The Monster I have Become
by The Queen of Asgard
Summary: "The love that lasts the longest is the love that can never be." This is the story of a rouge human, a Hunter, and the romance between them that was accidental and unintended. PredOCxHumanOC    ON HOLD!  Looking for a co-author
1. Welcome to the Jungle

**Okay, I know I promised you guys that I would write more Hunger Games stuff and I promise, I will. Just not right now lol. **

**This is my newest story called Dance with the Devil until I can think of a less stupid title. Any suggestions, let me know. **

**Okay plot goes something like this...Yes no, maybe so?**

**Irene Howard ends up on a strange planet and off the back, she is attacked by something that seems to be hunting her for sport. When she kills a Predator that captured her singlehandedly, she begins to string a reputation as a Demon Spawn, placed on the planet by Paya to destroy the unrighteous and rewards on her head are great. Now, a young hunter, wanting to prove himself will track the Demon and end her reign once and for all. But now when he comes face to face with Irene, he realizes that she is killing him slowly and painfully. PredOC/OC **

**Yes, no? If you have ideas, I would LOVE to hear them because I am a HUGE fan of getting new ideas. :)**

**1.) This story is rated M for gore and sex scenes (There's more than one, kiddies. :))**

**2.) I don't own Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me. **

**3.) REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! I WILL NOT CONTINUE OTHERWISE! **

**~xXx~ **

**Hannah**

* * *

This was somewhere Irene didn't want to be.

She wasn't sure what exactly had happened. One minute she had been in her study, doing her homework on the 1997 Drug War in Los Angeles. The next, she was lying flat on her back, blinking up at the pastel pink sky. She groaned and sat up, looking around at the forest floor. She was in a clearing and all around her was strange foliage she had never seen before. She began chewing on her bottom lip as she stood up. She definitely wasn't dressed for trekking through the jungle in her sports bra, sweatpants and purple Hello Kitty socks and God only knew how far it was to civilization. She looked around and decided, from her many treks with her father, to follow the sun…wherever that may be…and travel west.

She was glad the forest was warm and muggy because otherwise, she would be shivering in the decreasing light. That didn't mean night was coming, did it? Oh yeah, it did.

Irene knew what to do quite well. She had been back in the wilderness more times than she could count with her father and older brother, Mike. She stumbled across a rock, swearing all the while and then found something better than she expected. It was something that resembled a cypress tree and its roots fanned out, making a cage just big enough for her to fit into. She took a deep breath and was thankful that she was wearing a sports bra or she would have been stuck. Unfortunately, she had no way to start a fire so she did the best she could to curl up to conserve body heat.

'Well, this is just great,' She thought bitterly. She had absolutely no clue where she was or what was going to happen to her. The jungle around her was silent and it felt like a blanket, smothering her and draining her of her energy. She curled up and closed her eyes, trying to conserve her body heat.

Her mind was racing so much it was impossible for sleep so she opened her eyes and looked up at the eastern sky, astonished to find a moon three times larger than Earth's own, casting silver shadows onto her body that looked like prison stripes.

'This so isn't Earth,' She thought to herself and suddenly, a scream shattered the silence and Irene's head whipped around towards the sound. The cry died down into a guttural moan and Irene's heart began to beat faster. What could produce such a sound? It had almost sounded human, but even in movies, human cries didn't sound that terrified and pained. She glanced around for anything that might defend herself, but found none. She wondered if this was only a dream, a sick twisted world that her mind was conjuring as she slept. She pinched herself but that didn't help. She winced and gasped, it echoed in the silence of the night.

Suddenly, she heard something crashing through the underbrush, stalking her. Irene whimpered and scooted as far away from the thing as she dared. She hoped that the night and the coming storm would block her and her scent from whatever was tromping towards her. Suddenly, her hand brushed against a large stick, half stuck in the mud and she grasped it with one hand. It was better than no weapon. But, as soon as she grasped it and tugged it out of dirt, the next thing that came out of it almost made her scream.

It was a human hand, the decaying flesh still clinging to the yellowed bone. Wanting to vomit, she jerked the limb away from the hand and barely breathing, she listened so hard that it hurt for the creature stalking her. She didn't hear squat but was there something moving towards her? No, it must have been a trick of light.

That was just about the time that a giant spear slipped between the cracks of the tree and grazed through Irene's shoulder. She cried out in agony and fear and rolled out of the way, trying to get out of the tree. She managed to slip between two of the roots and roll down a bank into a shallow river.

She gasped as the ice cold water enveloped her, rewarding her with liquids seeping into her lungs. She hacked and stood up on shaky legs, trying to breathe. She heard the thing, whatever it was, roar in anger from losing his prey. Irene was a smart girl and knew if she stuck around, she wouldn't have the opportunity to go for a swim. She took as deep as a breath as she could with her screaming lungs and plunged deeper into the water, swimming against the lazy current. She heard the thing, whatever it was, because she couldn't see squat in the dark, sliding down the riverbank and suddenly, it was sloshing through the water towards her.

She could hear the sizzle of shorted circuitry and she could see the thing clearly now and Irene almost started sobbing when she saw it.

The thing was gigantic, over 9 feet tall with heavy armor and a mask that looked to be made out of thick silver metal. His body was almost human like with a broad, well-toned chest and talon tipped fingers. Thick, oil black dreads cascaded down his back and human heads, arms and other grotesque items hung off his many belts and bracelets. It was so much, Irene almost threw up right there, but then she remembered that beast was after her. She took another deep breath and plunged under the water, ignoring the burning sensation in her lungs and the buzz in her skull.

Her head popped out and she saw she was closer to the other side and had floated a considerable ways away from the giant creature that had been hunting her. She kicked as hard as she could and scrambled up onto the gravel bank, gulping down the sweet, perfumed air that hung around her like an exotic incense.

She knew, however, that there were probably more of these things around, just waiting for her to slip up and Irene quickly sat up and looked around. The one hunter had disappeared, hopefully to go find better prey than her. She began running blindly through the woods and as she was running, she tripped over something and almost screamed for the second time that night.

There, in the darkness, lay a human body, the blood still seeping from his wounds. He looked to be young, around his mid to late twenties and wore a black uniform and his gun was still clutched in his right hand.

Irene ripped it out of his grasp and stuck it into the waistband of her soaking wet sweatpants. She began walking now, as silently as she could through the jungle. She had to hide, get through the night when something grabbed her ankle and pulled her down into a hole. She gasped and started wailing, but a hand was over her mouth.

"Shut up or they'll hear you," A voice growled her ear and she stopped thrashing and the hand dropped to its owner's side. "Luke, we got a live one."

Irene turned to see a tall young man with cropped brown hair, piercing grey eyes and a scar that ran down his face, smiling down at her. "Sorry to scare you like that, but you can't be seen in the open at night. What the hell were you thinking, running like that? There was no way that you would have made it till morning!"

"Oh leave the kid alone Trent," Another guy spoke and he almost took Irene's breath away. He was tall, like the first guy with dreadlocks similar to those of the hunter. He had soft baby blue eyes and a bit of stubble framing his face. He was male model gorgeous and Irene gasped softly when she saw him. "What's your name, kid?"

"My name is Irene," She said softly and the two young men glanced at each other, "Irene Howard of Belmont Louisiana."

"Thought you had a bit of an accent there," Trent said and looked her up and down, smirking slightly, "And how old are you, Irene?"

"I'm eighteen," She spoke softly and looked down at her feet when she talked. The way that he was looking at her made her feel extremely uncomfortable. "What are those things out there?"

"Those, my dear lady are what we call Yautja, otherwise known as the Predators. See, we're on this planet for one purpose and that's to be hunted by these…things." Luke looked at her and she blushed under his gaze.

"What?"

"Can I put your hair in dreadlocks? It helps here, trust me." He asked as she stroked her fawn colored hair, the pride and joy of her life. She had been growing it out for six years and she had cared and loved for it the whole time. She sighed and then nodded slowly. He smiled at her and motioned her to sit down.

She was hesitant at first. She had only known these men for five minutes and she already trusted them with her treasure. She sat down and Luke began pulling it into half inch strands with some sort of stretchy fibrous plant.

"How did we end up here?" She asked quietly and Luke sighed as Trent answered the question.

"Nobody knows. All we know is that one day, we found ourselves parachuting towards the ground. I managed to survive one attack as soon as I landed and that's how I lost the woman I was traveling with." Trent winced and looked up at the trees. We were in an underground tunnel with a fire going. It was rather comfortable and they were far enough back inside the tunnel that the breeze blew the smoke out through the whole where Irene had fallen into. Or was grabbed or whatever. She saw the hardened look in his eye and she sighed. The poor man.

"We then had a clan of over 10 humans. Most died over time. Some died in battles between the larger and smaller Predators and others…Well; we don't like to talk about them."

Irene winced as Luke started backcombing her hair. "We found this tunnel with three other people, Jasper, Kayane, and Martique. Jasper, unfortunately, was caught and killed and we believe that Kayane might have eaten something poisonous and as for Martique…" Luke sighed and his eyes got that dreamy faraway look in them as well, "She just went missing one day."

Irene looked up and sighed. She wondered what her family had had for dinner. She missed them. "So, how long have you guys been here?"

Trent looked at Luke and then they both sighed, "Longer than either of us like to think about."

Irene gave him a look.

"Two years at the most."

"So, it is possible to stay alive on this hellhole?" Irene asked as she felt some strands of hair fall out. She moaned softly and watched the long hair fall down her shoulders.

"Only if you know how to," Trent muttered and walked farther back into the tunnel, "I'm going to bed. I nominate that you take first watch, Luke."

"Good thinking," Luke muttered and began backcombing her hair as him and Irene talked about what had happened on Earth while they had been away. Finally, after several more hours, Luke sat back with a sigh and admired his handiwork. "You look like a warrior princess."

He handed her a shard of metal that had a mirror like surface and her eyes widened in shock. She DID look good. Her tanned skin and dark freckles glowed in the soft firelight and her hazel eyes sparkled like a flame. "I even had some beads that I put in there."

"Wow…" She murmured and smiled slightly at her reflection. She had never been one to stare at herself in a mirror, but now, in her darkest hour, she lit up like the moon.

"These things, they can be killed, but it's hard. I can train you to fight with what weapons I've picked up." Luke said, "And Trent can teach you about the native plants."

"I don't really like him that much," she blushed deeply after admitting this to Luke but he just smiled and laughed.

"He's just a little rough around the edges. He doesn't really like meeting new people." Luke said, smiling slightly as Irene looked back up at him.

"I can tell."

"There's some hammocks in the back of the tunnel, you can go ahead and get some sleep. I'm sure you've had a rough night."

"You have nooooo idea." Irene chuckled dryly and stumbled back to the hammocks, almost hitting Trent as she walked towards an empty hammock. They were made out of some sort of animal pelt and she curled up in one and closed her eyes, and for the first time since she had arrived, she felt safe and secure.

* * *

**Ah, yes, chapter one. Oh joy. **

**Anyway, if you liked what you read, please, don't be a stranger and drop me a review! :)**


	2. Fight For Your Life

**Whoo, got another chapter done today and so I was all like, oh what the hell, I'll give them another chapter, see if I get any new reviews on it. **

**Sorry if there's any switchings of 3rd person to 1st person, my brain is still in 1st person mode from all the stories I've been writing in 1st person. Anyway, there HAVE been some changes that I've been working on that SHOULD make the story a little more interesting, so hopefully you guys enjoy it cause I LOOOOOVE writing it! :) **

**Anyway, onto the awesome stuff. **

**1.) This story is rated M for a reason. Maybe not now, maybe not even next week, but there WILL be several sex scenes (actually, ones coming up in the next chapter! SPOILER!)**

**2.) I do not own Predators, but I own my OCs Trent, Luke, and of course, Irene. :) **

**3.) Your reviews are my heroine and I am an ADDICT! SHOW A SISTAH FROM ANOTHA MISTAH SOME LURVE AND REVIEW! :D **

**Now, ONTO THE SHOW! :D**

* * *

Morning broke and she was surprised to see Luke sleeping the hammock that once held Trent. She peered down at him and then remembered her hair. He had tied it up and had sealed it with a waxy material to help the dreads set.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty," Trent said gruffly and she smiled slightly and nodded at him. "Breakfast's on the bench."

Indeed there was a round green fruit open and shining in the morning light.

"Oh Thank God, I'm starving," She muttered before grabbing the fruit and sinking her teeth into its flesh only to almost vomit it back up. It tasted so bitter, that she almost started crying.

"You get used to it," Trent smirked slightly and leaned back, looking at the opposite wall. "So, you said you were from Louisiana, right?"

"That's right."

"I should have been able to tell. Your accent is extremely thick."

If there was one thing that irked Irene more than something hunting her, it was someone telling her that she had an accent. She puffed up and glared at him.

"I do NOT have an accent!" She huffed and Trent chuckled, going back to his fruit.

"Whatever you say, lil' darlin'," He snorted at his joke, causing Irene to turn bright red and throw her uneaten fruit at him. "Hey, come on I was only kidding."

"Oh go f**k yourself," She snarled and suddenly, she lunged at him!

With a mighty roar that could have awakened the dead, she knocked him to the ground and fumbled around, looking for anything that might be a useful weapon. Her hand grasped a rock, but she was pushed off before she had time to use it. She felt herself stumble backwards and she glanced at Trent who also had a crazy gleam in his eye.

"So," He smirked and she noticed, with pride, that his lip was bleeding, "You like to fight? Well, get ready for this, chicky because you gotta fight to stay alive." He pulled out something that resembled a dagger and she moved out of the way as he sliced by her. He swung again, but Irene had already stepped out of the way. He snarled and jabbed at her, but she backed up and suddenly, her back was up against the wall of the tunnel.

"And sweetheart, I ain't dead yet," He snarled and pushed the tip of the knife into her neck. He brought it down and smirked. "You know a lot already. Tell me, how did you become so skilled?"

"I've been taking Kung Fu since I was little and yoga and Pilates since I was 11." She told him truthfully and walked away from him. She hated being bested in a fight, but one had to know when enough was enough.

"And she has a temper to match her skills I see," A new voice spoke and Trent and Irene turned to see Luke yawning and rubbing his eyes. "That could be useful or deadly to us. Hopefully useful."

She dropped the rock and tugged on a dread. "So…what do you guys do around here for fun?"

"Oh we train and collect food when we can and just basically, try not to die." Trent put the bone knife back up on a shelf. "Fun enough for you?"

Irene smiled but then felt something trickling down her shoulder. She touched her shoulder blade and gasped when she saw her fingers were crimson with her blood. She looked at Luke who looked at Trent who looked at the wound.

"Trent, you're Mr. Military Medic Man, would you..."

"Yeah, I got it," He muttered as he grabbed a pile of white plant material. "Sit flechita," He motioned for her to sit down and she looked at him. "What?"

"You called me…little arrow?" Her Spanish was rough, but that much she could tell what he had said, "Why little arrow?"

He chuckled and coaxed her arm up. "Little arrow in my mind meant something heroic, almost like a triumph name. It was my sister's name before she passed."

She winced as he touched the wound with the fibrous material, "Where are you from?"

He sighed and then tugged something out of her wound, causing her to cry out like a wounded kitten, "You're lucky I found this. These things can get extremely infected extremely fast."

"You're dodging the question," Irene pointed out and he looked at her and arched an eyebrow.

"Well, if you must know, I'm from Spain. I was in the Spanish army and one day, I found myself falling to the forest floor of this hellhole. I always imagined this was what Hell would be like here with these demons. Never an ounce of security or trust; you can't trust anyone here, it's too dangerous." He grabbed some more white material from a hollowed out…something. "I know how to fight. That's the only reason I've been around for so long. Luke's only been around this long because he too knows how to fight. Compassion will only get you so far in this hostile world."

"So…what exactly is this planet? It's not these Yautja's home world, is it?" She asked as he gently wrapped her shoulder in the gauzy fibers.

"No," He said bluntly, "I've concluded that this world is only a game world. Where they come to hunt creatures that are bizarre and strange and unfortunately, it seems like humans are on that list."

"Oh shit, that's not good," She muttered and rolled her shoulder slightly.

"The material has something similar to aloe in it. You'll live," He smiled gently and she smiled at him. He wasn't such a bad guy. Just a bit of a tease she took too far. She really was a hot head. She had been known as Hot Headed Howard since she was in 6th grade. She was new at Lincoln Middle School and she had taken a ball she had no clue was the ball that a certain 8th grader used during every day. He began teasing her because of her thick accent and freckles. She had gotten so mad; she threw the ball into the face of the 8th grader and had ended up breaking his nose.

She smiled slightly and looked at Trent. He reminded her of her older brother, Mike. She wondered if they had noticed she was missing yet. "I'm sorry that I attacked you. It reminded me of a darker part of my past."

Trent chuckled and leaned against the wall, "Its fine. I mean, yeah, sure, you're good, but I'm better."

She slugged him on the shoulder and snorted, "Oh yeah, fine, whatever. Just wait. Give me a weapon and let's go."

Trent leaned forward and put his stubbly chin in his hand. "Alright flechita, I'll take that bet." He stood up and handed her a bone knife that was probably once a pelvis on an animal and she weighed it, feeling dread build up in her stomach. She never fought with knives or weapons except for sticks. The weight was all off and she had no experience fighting with knives of any sort, but she didn't want to look like a total moron either. She gripped the end of the knife and grinned at Trent.

"Bring it on, babe."

They stood outside, facing each other, squared off with their bone knives, "Well flechita, I hope your weapons skills are as good as your talking skills." He snorted at his joke and Irene narrowed her eyes.

"Alright you two please don't kill each other. God only knows there's enough death on this stupid planet." Luke mumbled and glanced around nervously.

"Okay, whenever you're ready," Trent said and Irene attacked, swinging the knife every which way. She was quickly blocked by his own knife and he swung her hand away, dropping to a knee and slicing at her thigh and lower body. She kicked him aside and dodged his blade again, barely getting her own up in time to repel his own attack at her exposed throat. She began trying to stab at his face, but realized that these knives were made more for slicing than stabbing.

She dropped to the ground and her foot snuck out, catching the back of his left knee and he stumbled. She leapt back up, but he was already back on her, attempting to slice any part of her that he could reach. Suddenly, a cold surface grazed the side of her cheek and she gasped as the cold sensation was followed by warm fluids dripping down onto the white bandaging of her shoulder. She reached up and touched her face and pulled back to see blood.

"Oh my gosh, I am so sorry…I didn't…"

But Irene didn't care. With a snarl and a roar, she jumped at Trent and began to fight like a caged jaguar. Trent knew if he wasn't careful, she might end up taking his life. He dodged left and right and up and down and finally, she got close enough where she put both hand on his chest and shoved backwards.

Trent went sprawling headfirst into a tree and he moaned softly as she came closer, his mind swimming. She touched the knife to his forehead and whispered, "I win."

Through the haze of his mind, he was slightly aware that Luke and Irene were helping him back to the tunnels. He hoped that he wasn't going to die. That would really, really, REALLY not be good.

"Oh, he's had worse than this," Luke groaned under his friend's weight and Irene tried to keep the weight off of her injured shoulder. "When we first met up, we were attacked by the Jungle Hunters and THAT story is infamous. I don't think we would have survived if it was a Super Predator."

"I thought there was only one type." Irene grunted as they slid back into the tunnels, showering dirt and grass on the makeshift room.

"Oh no, there's two. There's the Jungle Hunters and the Super Predators and they'll do ANYTHING to get at each other's throats. Age old struggle, methinks. We've seen them tear at each other's throats before in the past. That's what saved Trent's life the second time. He was being hunted by a Super Predator and ended up getting caught between a Jungle Hunter and the big guy and he barely escaped."

She glanced down at the man she had defeated and winced. She had never meant to hurt him BUT again, her temper got the best of her. Then she thought back to how he had cornered her before and she smirked slightly.

'An eye for an eye.' She thought bitterly as they laid Trent in his hammock. He moaned softly and Irene gasped, "Will he be okay?"

"Yes, but I highly doubt that he'll go messing with you again," Luke chuckled and he moaned.

"No more…buffalo sauce…" Trent moaned and batted Luke's hand away.

"Actually, defending yourself is only a last resort. The Predators think that if a human doesn't have a weapon, they're not worth killing. They won't fight back and they're not worth hunting. Go figure."

"So…" She arched an eyebrow and looked at Luke, "Why are you teaching me this stuff if I end up dying when I use it?"

"It keeps you safe from other things out there. Plus, it's just good to know," He explained and she nodded slowly. "So, let's take a look at your cheek now." He bent down really close to her and touched the wound. "It's probably gonna end up scarring but it's not the end of the world." He chuckled and she turned her eyes to him.

"What's so funny?"

He glanced up at her and grinned, "Oh nothing, it's just that it marked you in almost the same exact place where Yautja mark when they claim mates."

She blushed and glanced down. There was NO way in HELL that she wanted to be Trent's mate! "So, they're not like, big maters or do they spend their whole lives with one other…Yautja?" The word felt foreign on her tongue, like heavy cream.

"No, of course not," He glanced back over at his friend, "They alternate breeding, but their mates are the ones who are the ones that they truly are in love with? I'm not sure; I've never asked one up front how their mating system works. They would probably take offense to it."

She laughed and touched the wound. She wondered if she would ever find true love in this hell like world. Probably not since there was a zero to none chance that she wouldn't survive into next week but hey, if Luke and Trent could do it, why couldn't she?

* * *

**Ah, let the champagne pour I'm done with chapter 2! :D**


	3. The Attack at Midnight

**Longest chapter yet. **

**I sorta want to start giving my chapters names but I'm not creative to think of any. And the name of the story is now called Monsters Inside My Head because of what Irene becomes. **

**Anywhoo, this chapter does contain a RAPE SCENE so if there are little children in the audience, I have to go ask them to wait out in the lobby for the end of this chapter. **

**Oh Hades, I'm listening to the song Tonight I'm F**king you by Enrique What's-His-Face and oh does that totally give me ideas for new chapters (hee hee. :3)**

**1.) I do not own Predators nor do I know who does but I DO have the privledge of owning my OCs Irene, Luke, Trent, and others. :) **

**2.) This story contains Pred/Human sex scenes and relationships. If you do not like this sort of thing, I would suggest a psychiatrist...FOR ME AND MY FANS BEFORE ITS TOO LATE. (Orrrr the back button is always an option)**

**3.)This story is rated M for reasons. If offended by the following, sex, rape, language or gore, please hit the back button. Thanks and have a nice day. :D**

* * *

She did survive.

Actually, she did more than survive, she THRIVED. The thick air soaked up the adrenaline and the ever hanging threat of death made her more alert. She became a huntress that feared Luke and Trent almost as much as they feared the Yaut'ja.

She had also counted.

Six months had gone by since she had found herself in this alien world. She had no desire in the slightest to come into contact with the natives after her first brush with death.

Her sweatpants and sports bra had become soft and flimsy and so she had been given a shirt by Trent so she could cover up. The plant-like material also bound her breasts better so she could move around when she was fighting with the men she now looked upon as brothers.

"Yo, I," Someone was shaking her and she opened her bleary eyes and glanced at the figure of Luke, holding a torch. "It's time for us to do watch. Trent just got done."

She glanced down to see Trent curled up in his hammock already sleeping. Or pretending to. She blushed and looked back up at Luke. Her feelings, surprisingly, after spending six months with the guys, had fallen towards Trent who had fought with her on the first day. Of course, that's usually who she spent her time with and that's who she connected best with.

"Alright," She murmured and stepped out of her hammock. Three other figures slept in other hammocks and Irene touched one of their heads, smiling slightly. It was a young girl that they had found in the forest, running for her life. Her name was Thais and even in sleep, she held her astonishing beauty. She had refused to put her hair in dreadlocks and now it fell around her face in a blanket of gold, while a slight smile tugged at her face.

"She's probably dreaming of home," He whispered and they tiptoed out of the back of the tunnel. They went out to the tunnel and she shivered slightly. There were no seasons here, but she honestly didn't mind much. She found that it was almost always warm but for some reason, she was cold. Irene found herself wondering what her family was doing now. Were they still grieving her loss or were they getting back into their normal routine WITHOUT her?

"Thinking of home?" Luke read her expression and she looked at him and narrowed her eyes.

"Put out that damned light before a Hunter spots us!" She hissed and jumped out of the hole. "I need some fresh air. It gets cramped down there sometimes."

"Oh I totally agree," He said as he put his light and scrambled up after me, "It's nice to have though. I mean, if we didn't have it, we'd all be dead now. And it's nice to have the extra space for Thais, Kyle and Stephanie."

"But taking them on makes us more vulnerable as a group," She argued, "They're great but they make us more like sitting ducks than we already are. If a Hunter finds out about the Tunnels, we'd be sitting ducks. We have no clue where those tunnels come out at and I'm sure that there is more than one Predator on this godforsaken planet."

"Hey, relax, will you?" He grasped her shoulders and began massaging them. She whipped around and slapped his hands away as if they were annoying insects. "What is with you tonight? You're acting like a bitch!"

As fast as a viper, she raised her hand to his cheek with the intent to strike him. "Do not," She hissed, "Test me."

He arched an eyebrow and then a silence enveloped the two. "Why are so defensive?" He asked quietly and she sighed and all the fire left her eyes.

"Because I feel like you're coming onto me…" She mumbled and he cocked his head.

"Why wouldn't I? You're beautiful, smart, and not to mention dangerous as a Yaut'ja. I almost have to watch my back even when there's nothing to run from. You're dangerous, but that's what draws me to you. You're like a fire in darkness. You draw me in with your beauty and light but then I get burned when I try and feel its warmth."

This whole time, she noticed slightly that he was getting closer and closer to her and she almost stopped breathing when his lips brushed her own quivering ones. "I love the fire…even if I get burned…"

His lips came crashing down onto her own and she yelped at the contact. She tried to wriggle out of his grip but he was too strong! She couldn't breathe! She tried to catch her breath, but she was suffocating…Her head was becoming light and she felt her body falling slightly, only to be caught in Luke's strong arms.

_'Luke you damned son of a bitch, you touch me I will literally rip your head off your body…'_ She thought through her hazy mind and she moaned as her back touched the cold ground. Luke was over her now, kissing her and running his hands over her body, leaving goose bumps in their wake. He slowly grazed her breasts, undoing the cloth that held them in place. Her body was giving up its fight. Irene's struggling lessened as Luke kissed her face and neck and trailed southwards. His hand trailed down her toned stomach and slipped into the waistband of her sweatpants. She writhed around when he pressed a finger against her clit and Irene felt his erection on her shoulder.

She didn't want to scream but she knew if she didn't, he would take advantage of her and spill his seed into her and the last thing she needed was to get pregnant. She tried to get anything free but gasped when she felt his hand grasp the elastic of her pants and yank down, exposing her wet core to the warm air.

"Now fire," Luke chuckled, removed his finger and undid his belt, "Show me how warm you can keep me."

He dropped his pants and she could see he did indeed have an extremely large…pole, for lack of a better word. He straddled her and ran his dick teasingly over her wet lips.

"Please don't do this…" She whimpered but he took no heed as he painfully slid his thick member into her weeping core. She couldn't help it anymore. She arched her back and let out a pathetic little mew.

That little noise was more than enough to get the attention of a wandering Predator. His head snapped around and he saw that there were two shapes, obviously too wrapped up in their mating to notice him. He smirked behind his mask, his mandibles clicking together in sly joy. He willed for his cloaking device to turn on and he began to make his way towards the oomans in heat. Two for the price of one. He hoped they would be a better fight than the last few oomans he had pursued who weren't even worth the kill. He silently unsheathed his spear and it expanded from a three foot long pole to a deadly six foot weapon that glittered like the shell of a deadly insect in the light of the three moons.

He began to make his way over to the lovers and only when he was standing right behind the male did the female cry out. But by that time it was too late.

"Luke!" She cried out and he thought it was from pleasure. He gripped her hips and slammed his body into hers. Through his fevered brain, he never knew what hit him. There was a wet SCHLIIIIICK and he saw Irene's face covered in blood and it didn't take Einstein to figure out why he was bleeding. Protruding from his chest was the tip of a spear and as he tried to take a breath in, he found himself choking on his own blood, coughing it up onto Irene's bare breasts. Suddenly, his eyes went glassy and he keeled over backwards and only now did Irene get a chance to see her Savior and her Death.

The Predator had to be one of the Super ones. He was massive with mottled orange skin thick greasy black dreadlocks, and thick shiny beetle black armor and bared a giant spear still covered in Luke's blood.

He glared down at the tiny insignificant female. She was almost stark naked and as he glared down at her, she didn't make any attempt to cover herself under his gaze and his eyes fell to her naked breast, gleaming in the moonlight.

She WAS unarmed and a female in her shape and size would make an extremely good spoil of the hunt. He could keep her as bait for other humans or even as his own personal whore. It was EXTREMELY scandalous to even KEEP a human alive, let alone bed one, but the Elders didn't need to know anything about what the Hunters did on the Game Planet or what they killed besides what they brought back as trophies.

Or he could just kill her and bring back her skull like he was going to do with her little friend there. Then he looked at her more closely and saw she had something called 'tears' flowing out of her eyes and he didn't think that it was from his presence although he was pretty sure he had something to do with it. Was it possible that the male had attacked her and had his way with her FORCEFULLY?

That, in Yaut'ja tribes, meant death. The female had every right to choose the male for she was the one who carried the sucklings, birthed them and raised them.

However, humans were different.

He looked back at the girl who was now curled up in a ball, rewrapping the glands on her chest and pulling up her pants. He could see she was shaking and he could see no weapons. So, he picked the girl up and grabbed her by her hair to keep her from running away. His mandibles clicked together in disappointment when she didn't even struggle, but she did let out a soft mew of pain. She finished tying off her piece of cloth then he tugged on her hair again, growling softly.

The ooman knew what he wanted her to do. Still shaking, she stood up with the tears still falling down her face. He quickly picked her up and threw her over his back and was satisfied to hear an OOF come when she hit his thick armor.

Irene watched her home for the past six months slip away into the darkness. Luke was dead, good riddance and that left only Trent to teach the younger three. She hoped that she too had taught them enough to get by without her because now, she began to realize that her fate was this. She was being carried off by some fucking beast that had just stuck the guy who had just stuck her. Literally, she had gotten stuck more than she'd like to think about right now.

* * *

And once again, she was stuck.

She was tied up sitting on the ground with both her hands clasped around an invisible rope that dug into her wrists. The Hunters camp was farther away, so she couldn't feel the heat of the fires that burned, but the smoke was making her choke and sputter.

She knew exactly what she was out there for and why he hadn't killed her.

Irene Howard had become the bait.

She tested her ropes and tugged on them slightly but her binds did not relinquish. This earned her a growl from the Predator skinning something far enough away that she couldn't see what it was, but close enough to hear its human like moans. She prayed to God that it wasn't one of her group.

She had dubbed the monster that had captured her Bait since she really wasn't in a position to ask or even want his real name. She just sat there looking at one particular tree while he skinned the creature that was now uttering guttural sounds. Was it possible that this was his last human lure? She didn't want to think about what would happen to her when something better came along.

The one sun was now to the west of her while the other one was to the north and they burned the naked shoulders of Irene. She was used to wearing a shirt when she was outside and even that was extremely rare. She moved to sit in the shade of one particular tree and she winced when her blistered flesh touched the cold, rough bark.

Suddenly, Bait got up and began making his way over to the young woman. Her eyes went wide and she pressed herself up against the tree, willing herself to become invisible. He stopped in front of her and she could hear him growling underneath his mask. She closed her eyes and tried to disappear but she felt his clawed finger lift under her chin and it made her look up at him. She did so and he could see the fear in her unblinking eyes.

With the hand that wasn't under his chin, he unhooked a tube with a long, satisfying HISSSSS and he slowly lifted his mask off with one hand. He wondered if she had ever been truly frightened before.

When she saw the face of her captor, Irene almost fainted it was so horrendous. The cheeks were basically nonexistent and peeled off from his face, forming four sharply tipped mandibles. His teeth were sharp and made obviously for ripping meat off of bones. He had no nose but instead, his face was mashed together, making a permanently angry look. His eyes were a piercing yellow and held deceptive, cunning, sly, manipulative character. His forehead and the back of his head were flat and bald and little hairs like the bristles of a steel brush ran up his naked scalp. The dreadlocks fell onto his shoulders and finally, as Irene drank in this hellish beast did she realize that she wasn't exactly scared, but intrigued for she had never seen a creature so…to put it gently…ugly.

She looked away and he snarled, his mandibles snapping together in agitation. How could she not be frightened? She must have had a stomach of steel and a mind as twisted as those of the Yaut'ja. He leaned down close to her and wrapped his fingers around her tiny little windpipe. Oh how easily he could snap her like a toothpick! His grip tightened and Irene found herself gasping for breath. She couldn't even do anything because her hands were tied together.

She needed to breathe so badly…His grip was tightening and little spots danced in front of her eyes. She was going to die and be happy about it. She was going to get out of this nightmare.

Suddenly, the warm, humid air rushed into her lungs and she vomited up the nothingness in her belly. Bait chittered angrily as if it was her fault she had almost suffocated. She glared at him and wiped the bile from her chin. Why couldn't he have held on for a few seconds longer? She could have been out of this nightmare and out of this hellish situation.


	4. A Conundrum

**Yes, yes, me again! I'm sorry for not updating anything what with finals coming around so soon and such. Anyway, I just thought I would update this little story and let you guys read and review. (Please? ^^) I appriciate all the reviews I've been getting (Yes, I know who it is, and thank you) so anyway...yeah...Have a nice day!**

**1.) I do not own Aliens vs. Predators**

**2.) I only own Irene Howard**

**3.) THIS IS A PURELY FICTIONAL PIECE and its rating is this because of some graphic content that is coming up in the DISTANT future. :P**

* * *

Two weeks passed and very little happened. Not that Irene wanted anything to happen. Even being dead probably had more perks that her new life, she thought to herself often. She let the breath out of her lungs and hit her head against the side of the tree, causing Bait to look up. He was gone often, she realized out hunting humans or whatever was unlucky enough to wander into his clutches. She began to realize that alongside humans, the woods held all sorts of game. Deer, grouse, and even tiger like creatures stalked the planet. Not that any of them paid any attention to Irene and she had only caught glimpses of them in the brush.

She had become acquainted with the animals while they were on the ground and she was eating their remains with her teeth which was more humiliating than anything she had ever done before. Bait got a huge kick out of it, his expression turning to one of glee when he fed his scraps to Irene. To go from a diet that was specifically grass and root vegetables to extremely rich meaty meals was almost too much for her poor body to handle and the first week, she vomited most of her food back up. The one thing she had constantly had was water and for that, she was extremely grateful.

Going to the bathroom was a disgusting and somewhat humiliating experience, especially if Bait was around to watch her.

So, anyway, she was pretty much hating life and felt like she was going to go out of her mind from sheer boredom. She had gotten over the fact that her captor was a hideous monster and now just tried to stay out of his way, which was hard when she was his favorite punching bag after a hard day of hunting. She was pretty sure she had fractured a rib and the whole right side of her face was so swollen, she couldn't see out of her right eye.

Night was fast approaching, a time that Bait liked to go out hunting and a time that Irene was forced to do her bathing with her hands tied together. Usually, it was done with her clothes on but she really didn't mind. She just enjoyed lounging around in the water. He got up from a rock that sat close to one of the fires and scooped up the helmet sitting at his feet. Bait grabbed his spear and his wrist blades and snarled at the sight of Irene who sat under the tree that now had a permanent dent from where her head had smashed it so many times.

'Don't wait up, Honey,' she thought bitterly and when she was sure he was gone, she crawled over to the stream that ran by the tree. She pushed herself into the water and ignored the chafing ropes that threatened to make her wrists start bleeding again. She moaned quietly when the cool water hit her hot body and she closed her eyes and splashed water onto her face. Suddenly, her hand hit something and she gasped and yanked her hand back. She now had a large gash that was bleeding on the palm of her hand and she hissed in agitation. The smell of blood was like sending a signal out to every Hunter for miles and she winced. She was helpless in this situation. She was tied up and she had no means of freeing herself.

Or did she?

As she dipped her hand back into the water, she moved the rocks around carefully, trying to avoid the thing she had hit. Finally, her hand slid from a rough rock to a new smooth surface. Irene gingerly moved aside any debris and found a bleach white bone that had obviously been there for a long time. She picked it up between her tied hands and examined it. It had probably once had been a femur but now it was only a very sharp shard. She wondered if this might come in handy in the near future. She slid her weak body out of the water and onto the cool, dry ground. She wondered if it ever rained there and if it did, would it hurt her. She could breathe alright on the planet, but what if the stuff was like, acid rain or something?

'Well obviously it rains,' she told herself as she gripped the bone in her hand, 'or else it wouldn't be a tropical planet.'

She missed the company of people. Counting the days, even though they were longer than the days back on Earth, she had been with this Predator for at least a month and still, no human had been brave, or stupid enough to approach her. She never saw anybody and the only company she had was that…thing!

She let out a loud huff and slid back towards her tree. It was getting rather dark rather quickly and she hoped that nothing would try and kill her tonight. Unfortunately, she had been the prey of a much smaller Jungle Hunter several weeks earlier. The smaller one had quickly been taken care of by the larger Super Predator who had been lurking somewhere close by and had again, saved her from a fate that she wished she could have escaped.

The hair on the back of her neck stood up on end and her head snapped up a slight bit. Was it her imagination, or did she hear something rustle the bushes to her right? She looked around but it was hard to see anything in the fading light. Irene held her breath and felt goose bumps creep up her arms. Was this it, then? Was something finally here to destroy her, to seal her doom officially like the icing on a dastardly cake?

Her hand tightened around the bone fragment. Even if she wished for death, she would still go down fighting. She had heard the noise again and this time, she knew what it was. The gentle hum of a monster's cloaking device. This was definitely it.

Then she saw the uncovered black mask of a Jungle Hunter. He seemed to be far smaller than the Super Predator that kept her hostage here and she narrowed her eyes. She would have loved to have her hands free, but she didn't think that was going to happen.

Then, as suddenly as the Jungle Hunter had come, he was gone. But there was a good reason for him to leave for coming through the underbrush was Irene's captor. He glared at her behind his mask and then clacked his mandibles together angrily, muttering something in his language.

"Well excuse ME for not dying!" She snapped. Her nerves were raw from the encounter she had just experienced and the Super Predator took a step towards his captive, growling quietly. Suddenly, as fast as lightning, his foot snuck out and kicked her in the stomach. Hard.

She gasped for breath and doubled over but when none came, she closed her eyes to the surge of tears. She had forgotten, for a split second, how much bigger this thing was compared to her and how temperamental he was. She coughed as she tried to take a breath and realized that probably a couple of her ribs had been rather badly bruised.

She didn't say anything else because the Super Predator had stalked back off to his fires, leaving only Irene her sanity for company. She wished more than anything that he was dead and she was home with her family…She wondered if they had stopped wondering where she went yet.

Little did she know that a smaller Predator had watched the whole scene between the Super Predator and his bait. He wondered how something so small and fragile could stand up for itself and how she had survived so long tied to the end of that rope.

Slowly, he disappeared into the woods, intrigued by the spunk of his ooman. She really was one of a kind and one he would make his prize.

The next morning was spent in utter agony. She could barely move without feeling like her insides were going to fall out and she moaned when Bait came by to throw her meat in her face. He laughed darkly when he saw her in such pain and then picked up his spear and activated his cloaking device.

The rest of the day was spent in sheer pain for Irene could not move without crying out and in her current state, that's NOT something she wanted. The bone shard gleamed like a wicked knife as she picked it up. Enough was enough. She was going to break free of these accursed binds.

She began to saw through the roped, taking care not to nick her skin as she cut through the binds on her wrists. Finally, several hours and cuts later, the invisible ropes were no more and for the first time in a month, Irene saw her bloodied, raw, fish belly white skin. She hissed in relief as her binds fell away and she gently massaged her sore wrists. She couldn't do much for right now except lean against the tree. Unfortunately, she had to put the binds sort of back on or the Predator would notice something strange and probably kill her.

So, finally, after twenty minutes of enjoying her freedom, she was able to make it look like the ropes were back on her wrists and sat under the tree, barely containing her joy.

Bait didn't notice. Or if he did notice, he was impartial to whatever she did and when he had left again, after feeding her of course, she heard more rustling in the bushes. She froze up again and glanced around, only to see the hunter she had seen the day before watching her. Was he observing his new prey or was he just watching her for the sake of watching her?

They looked at each other in silence for a few moments until he turned his cloak back on and was gone.

* * *

**Who is this silent crusader? Is he friend or foe? (Of course, when you're in that situation, really nobody's your friend)**

**Anyway, give me the good, the bad, and the...more good, I suppose.**

**~XO~**

**Thais Y.**


	5. Free Warrior At Last

**I STAYED UP UNTIL 12:15 FOR YOUR STINKIN UPDATE SO I HOPE I GET GOOD REVIEWS! :D **

**Anyway, Irene IS based off of the Amazon warriors, woman who were basically warriors who didn't need men. They were pretty kick-$$ and I thought that Irene could learn a lot from them. So, anyway, now we know that Irene has a BIT more fight in her than we all thought originally, but she still has a LOT more fire left in her. **

**Pandora is playing Disney songs now. I guess its a sign that I should PROBABLY get off the internet.  
**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**3.) This chapter is sort of inspired by a fanfiction called "Sing for Me" that never got finished by 666cresentmoondemon666. I would HIGHLY recommend that story if you're into human/Yaut'ja relationships. She's a brilliant writer and I wished she had continued the story. But, from here on out, its all mine baby. ;D**

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!**

**IF YOU LIKE WHAT YOU'VE READ, LET ME KNOW! :D**

* * *

_This chapter is dedicated to all those who have reviewed my story so far. You guys are freaking AMAZING! :')_

* * *

Irene had a hard time the next few days trying to convince Bait that she still wore her binds. But, she did, however she did so. She stayed pretty comatose for the next few days, trying to keep still in hopes that her ribs and innards weren't bleeding internally. That's when she would get into trouble.

When she finally felt better, she began to plot her escape. Unfortunately, her Jungle Hunter hadn't returned for a few days but that was probably because the Super Predator had been at his base camp more and more, putting things away and putting out fires. Irene didn't want to know what would happen to her when he decided to go back to wherever he came from.

She spent most of her time sitting under the tree, drawing stick figures in the dirt, plotting in her mind, humming whatever songs came into her head. It had been a very long time since she had heard a Lady Gaga song or a Florence + the Machine song but since those two were her two favorites, she sang those two artists songs more than ever. She loved her music and didn't want to let that go for that would be like letting Irene Howard slip into somewhere where she couldn't come back.

She heard Bait come over to her and throw her a piece of meat. She found it better not to stand up for herself anymore but she couldn't really help that at all. She was pretty sure that he was tired of her because she hadn't caught him any prey. He gave her a long roar of rage which she took with a grain of salt. She looked at him and he snorted in agitation.

"Get used to it, Bait because I'm gonna be here for a very long time," She muttered darkly and pulled at her meat with her teeth, her dreadlocks swinging around her face. He hissed angrily and she rolled her eyes. Boy, had she heard THIS before.

Bait went storming off and that left Irene by herself again. She sat against her tree and then traced out her finalized plan in the dirt. When Bait was asleep, she would climb up into the tree and then try and reach other trees from that certain one. She leaned on her scuffed up knee and sighed deeply. This had to be the stupidest plan she had ever heard. But…She knew if she could get up into the canopy, she would be able to stay away from the Predators but for how long? She didn't know how she could survive. She would have to come down for water and food and then where would she be? A spear's throw away from having her head on some stupid Hunter's belt, that's what.

She looked up at the tree. The closest branch was about ten feet up and the bark was extremely soft, as she could tell from the dents that her head had caused. She held up her bone, her only mean of protection if her plan went SNAFU. She swore under her breath and closed her eyes. The day was already hot and she was so tired from keeping on her guard. Some sort of insects that resembled cicadas were chirruping in the grass and she moaned and opened her eyes, almost gasping when she saw him.

It was her Yaut'ja. The one who had been observing her and he was holding out something to her. Was this her imagination or was this creature actually trying to help her? She stood up and slowly took a step, dropping the bone for she had remembered what Trent had said so long ago.

In his hand, he held a knife that was a little big for her, but just the right size for someone like him. She wasn't sure what he meant by it. If she held the weapon, he would have every right to kill her and she would HAVE to fight back.

Finally, swallowing her own fear and wariness, she took the knife from his outstretched hand and tested it. She wasn't very accustomed to knives but it would have to work. However, now she had to hide it from Bait. She looked back at the Jungle Hunter and a silent question passed in between them, past the language barrier that they shared. He leaned over and tugged gently on her dreadlocks that had set after months of them just being neglected. She looked back at him with unblinking eyes and he nodded at her.

The dreadlocks and the fact that she wasn't dead set her apart from other people, she figured. Definitely the fact that she wasn't dead helped a lot. She looked back at the knife and noticed it was very plain but had a sharper edge than that of her bone.

"Uh…thanks," She said softly and suddenly, the Yaut'ja was gone! His cameo was turned on and for good reason because Bait was standing right behind her, his spear poised. She was holding, to her horror, the knife. The bastard! He had been working with Bait all along! Irene yelped and then began running, holding the blade tight in her hand. She dove into an outcropping of trees and then hid behind one, praying that Bait didn't find her.

After about ten minutes of hiding in the grass and daring herself to breathe, she looked around and figured she had a better chance if she made it to some sort of lake or river or something similar. She peered out from behind the tree and glanced around, but saw no sign of Bait or her traitor friend. She gritted her teeth and then began to run, hoping she didn't run into anything too unpleasant.

Finally, she made it back to a wide river that cut across the landscape like a scar and she glanced behind her. She didn't hear anything clomping through the underbrush and so she smiled slightly to herself and jumped to a little sandy bar and then waded through the ice cold water to the other side. Let them come after her. She would know.

After several hours of trudging through the jungle, Irene fell exhausted into a field of grass. She stared up at the pink sky and sighed. The knife was clutched tightly in her hand and she closed her eyes, feeling the wind rustling her hair. Suddenly, they snapped open, her brain going on full speed. What if the Jungle Hunter had turned to camouflage to WARN her about her the oncoming danger? What if it was an automatic trigger to help him escape the Super Predator?

Irene leapt up. She couldn't let this Hunter die for her stupid mistakes. And she had a deadly feeling that she might already be too late to save this Predator. She began to walk quickly which turned into a dead sprint as she ran towards the base where she had a prisoner for so long. She made several wrong turns and backtracked more than once before she finally smelled the smoke and heard the pained roar of the smaller Predator. She crept up towards the camp and saw the smaller Hunter was tied up and was ignoring the larger Yaut'ja altogether. She had to admire his courage. He was terribly proud, something that Irene had found rather attractive in all the men she had dated.

The Super Predator finally lost interest and grabbed his spear, obviously ready to go find his escaped convict. Was she more than a piece of meat to him now?

She mused for a few moments longer, making sure that Bait had finally gone. Then she ran to the smaller Hunter. He gave a little roar and she began cutting him free. "Yeah, I know, I'm sorry, but you left too." She said in an apologetic voice. She wondered if he could understand her and finally, he dropped back down to the forest floor and wavered around for a few seconds before he shook it off and began searching for his spear and belts. He found it and hooked it back around his waist. Irene had never gotten a very good look at a Jungle Hunter and now she saw that they were just slightly better looking than the Super Predators. Instead of sly piggy little eyes that held only bloodlust and actual lust, they held a bit of sense.

Suddenly, a dark roar was heard coming towards them and both turned around just in time to see Bait charging both of them like a bull who had seen read. Irene rolled out of the way, her training kicking back in after sitting out on the sidelines for so long. She came up on one knee and she saw the Yaut'ja do the same. He had his own spear out and Irene knew the time had come to finally bring down her oppressor. She narrowed her eyes and gritted her teeth and she looked at the Jungle Hunter. Even though he had put his mask back on, she knew that he had the same idea she did.

She became an Amazon. A woman of war, she let out a silent war cry and charged her enemy with her only ally. He quickly dodged out of Irene's way and knocked her aside, her training not being enough to save her from his full fury, but he hadn't been expecting the swift flexibility of the smaller Yaut'ja. She quickly got back into the fight and slashed at his exposed midsection, causing his cloak to spark and sputter.

He roared in anger and tried to bat Irene away like a fly but she was ready for him. She dodged and leapt like a track hurdler and sunk her knife into his exposed thigh. His anger turned to rage and his claws caught Irene down the side of the face, splashing her blood down onto to dusty ground. She cried out in agony as Bait shoved his own spear into the side of the smaller Yaut'ja.

"NOOOOOOO…" She screamed as her only friend fell to the dust. Bait gave a triumphant snarl and then stood up, limping slightly from the damage Irene caused. She tried to stem the flow of blood but now, she could taste the metallic fluid in her mouth and now, Bait had her by the throat and he was crushing the wind out of her. She couldn't breathe, couldn't fight, and couldn't see. Her world began to grow dim and all she could see was the wicked mask of her enemy…

No.

She couldn't die like this.

With her final remaining strength, she drove the blade she still clung tightly into the thick skin of Bait's forearm. He let out a howl and dropped her, wrenching the blade out of his arm. He threw it to the ground and let out a hiss. He only had eyes for this damned ooman that had irked him since he had stolen her away from the other ooman.

But, as he had been stemming the flow of blood, Irene had picked up the smaller Yautja's spear and had held it, ready to fend for her life. She would never fall so close to death again by his hands. She held the spear and was poised, ready to fight. This was her weapon. This was her time to fight. This was her time to shine, blood, gore and all.

"Come and get me, you bastard," She snarled and spat bright red. He snarled and picked up his own spear. She ran towards him and he parried her attacks rather easily. She attacked him with all the fury she could muster and finally, after several moments of fighting, he knocked the spear out of her hand and her to the ground.

She fell onto shoulder and cried out in pain. She dislocated her shoulder and now, through the blood, she could feel tears spring to her eyes. This was it and Bait knew that too. He stood over her, gloating and taking his time to kill her. She didn't allow a noise to escape her lips but suddenly, something caught her eye. It was the knife that had been her savoir. She wondered if it could be her saving grace once more.

Suddenly, the spear came down, poised to enter her belly. She rolled out of the way, grabbed the knife, came up on one knee and sheathed the knife into thin air. Only, this wasn't all thin air. It also entered the chest cavity of Bait.

Their eyes met, Irene's dark and angry while Bait's were full of surprise and anger. She let go of the knife and Bait fell to the ground, writing in pain. She stood up on shaky legs and cried in pain as her shoulder left the ground. She watched him die. She watched the light leave his eyes and felt the thrill of the hunt. Now she knew what made killing to exuberant and what the lure to these strange creatures was.

Killing was…fun.

Then she remembered the fallen warrior. "Oh my heck…" She muttered and ran over to where the Yaut'ja laid on the ground, taking shallow breaths, "It's gonna be okay, don't worry," She murmured and her hand grazed over the wound. She had been trained in first aid but nothing this big. "Just relax, I can take care of this," She hissed as she moved her shoulder again and suddenly, the Yautja's hand was clasping her injured one in his own and she thought it was a gesture of thanks until he popped her shoulder back into place!

She let out a moan and tears escaped her eyes. "Uh…thanks…" She moaned and rubbed her shoulder joint. She then looked around and saw Bait's loincloth. "Hold on, I have an idea."

She took the knife from Bait's fallen body and chopped off quite a bit of part of it but when she returned, the Jungle Hunter had already patched up his own wounds. "Oh you little sod…" She laughed slightly and used the rags for her bleeding face. He then tenderly moved the rags aside and applied a little of a stinging solvent to her face. She hissed but her wounds began to heal over and then, became closed altogether. She smiled at him and then looked at Bait's body. "I guess you'll want his helmet…"

The Yaut'ja shook his head and then motioned for her to take it. She looked taken aback and then shrugged, "Okay, if you insist…Thanks…" She went over and retrieved the mask from his body. "Can I have the spear too?"

He nodded and then stood up, wincing slightly. She then noticed that he was only about seven feet tall, only a few feet taller than her five feet seven inches. She smiled slightly and picked up everything he had on him including his belt and pouches full of dried meat and a water canteen. She looked back at the Yaut'ja she decided to dub as Hero.

"You…aren't going to try to kill me?" She asked hesitantly and then made a slashing motion across her throat. He chuckled deep in his throat and shook his head, his dreads swinging back and forth. She smiled slowly and then tucked the knife and spear into the belt.

Little did Hero know that he had just released an ooman unlike any that had ever been seen before on the Game Planet.

* * *

**Bum, bum, BUUUUUUUM! Cliffie! Well...sorta. Anyway, excuse any bad grammar or poor sentences. I'm tired and want to go to bed.**

**~*PEACE OUT A TOWN!~***

**Thais Y.**


	6. Bonding with the Locals

***Slams head against desk* Augh, yes, I realize that this is a TOTALLY lame chapter! And I know that everything falls into place rather nicely, probably nicer than it should have, but whatever! I wanted to get this updated before FINALS! **

**Anyway, just watching more LexxScar videos on youtube and found one by this one girl named IrishNeko. If you're really into the whole Human/Preddy relationship, give that a try. Set to the tune E.T. by Katy Perry...What could go wrong? **

**SO...Going along with business. I would like to thank all my reviewers and encourage reviews if you like what you've read. And if you want to be a critic, please be nice about it. I'm getting sick of really nasty critiques that have more bad than good.**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!**

**So...enjoy! ;D This one is for my lovelies! **

* * *

Irene guessed she had only a few hours before other Hunters would smell her out and come hunting. Hero had left without another word and before she could give him her thanks. She shrugged it off and looked up at the tree that had been her home for the past month. Bait had a food pouch and a water canteen and so she filled up the canteen to the brim and slung it over her shoulder and washed off the blood on her face. Then she realized that her clothes were soaked in blood and so, deciding it was time for her to put her best thinking mind forward, she tied up her hair with some stretchy stuff she had pulled off of Bait's loincloth.

Wait a second…

Without another thought, she ran over to the giant Predator and began to slice away his loincloth, taking large strips of the stuff that was stretchy and wound it around her arms to haul back up to the tree. She ignored the dark green blood and then sliced off almost all of it, keeping his manhood covered. She didn't want to see dead alien dick for the time being.

Finally, she had the knife in one hand, the bone that had bought her freedom in the other, and she had found rocks she had tied to her feet to get a better grip on the tree's bark. It might have been soft but there was no way should could get up there without MAJOR help.

Irene took a deep breath and then slammed the knife into the tree like it was hot butter! The bone and rocks didn't go in so easily, but she managed to get them stuck in here enough. She guessed that the knife was some foreign metal she had never seen before. It came out of the tree as easily as it went in and she didn't complain. Finally, after ten exhausting moments, (the tree branch was WAY higher up than ten feet) Irene reached the first branch and gasped in lungful's of air. The rocks were thrown back down to the ground and she began climbing.

She had always been a good climber. A girl who ended up getting the Frisbees out of trees and always the first to volunteer for the rope ladder in PE. Other than that, running, swimming, and hand-eye coordination was nil to zip. Finally, she began to see strange things in the tree. It was larger on top than it was on the bottom! How was this possible? Then it dawned on her. The trees were connected by branches that had grown together, making the perfect canopy highway! She wondered if any other humans before her had decided to check out the trees.

She grinned in happiness, the first smile that had flickered across her face for a long time and then she began to walk, praying that the branches were enough to hold her frame. A few more dicey looking ones she stayed far away from, but most of them were fairly stable and held her nicely. Some even dipped in, making the perfect place NOT to fall out of the tree when sleeping. She knew she couldn't leave these trees because of the creek but it was a rather nice tree. Except some hunter might come up and find her while she was sleeping. Then again…Some of the indents were so deep that even if they used their heat sensors, they wouldn't be able to see her!

Finally, she made her home in an indent that was rather deep but very narrow and long, perfect for sleeping in. Several smaller branches, not yet joining their comrades stood erect and ready for duty and she put the belts she had gotten from Bait on these. There was a large canteen, a pouch of dried meat and some sort of herb, another larger knife that she could barely lift, his mask, another bag full of bits of this and that and she had managed to take him cloaking device which would come in handy in case she had to make an escape. The only problem was that it was too big for her. She mused on whether she should cut it or not and then decided against it. If she cut it and found out it was unusable then she was screwed.

By the time she had sat down and taken off her sweatpants, now disgusting beyond belief, it was getting dark and she had no way of knowing if things besides her prowled these organtic byways. She didn't like the idea of a Predator stumbling upon her half naked, making something that was meant to look like a loincloth. She also hated the idea of using Bait's old loincloth but she didn't have much choice. She wound a part of the cloth around her waist and dipped the wider half between her legs, sliding it back up to meet the waistband of the loincloth. Then, she tore off more cloth and then slid it into the front and back of her waistband, tying it secure to make sure it stayed. She then stood up and admired her handiwork. The finished product was light and flexible and opted for coverage in all the right places. Then came the easier part, binding her breasts.

She had gifted and cursed with smaller boobs than most and now, she didn't need to hide her 34B, but she flaunted it and wrapped the stretchy material as tight as it would go around her upper chest. She heaved a great sigh when she had finished. She LOVED her sports bra and this was like, a sports bra times a zillion.

Then, suddenly, she heard a noise from farther in the jungle. It was a human scream. Goose bumps erupted on her exposed flesh and the clutched the knife that Hero had given her. Her heart had stopped and her breath was fast and shallow. What if he could see her from here? She didn't have the strength to fight, not after her battle with Bait and Hero!

She wedged herself into her new little nook that was rather uncomfortable with the remaining scraps as a pillow for her head. She prayed that no giant jungle cat roamed the trees, looking for a snack and that it wouldn't be as scary as she thought it was going to be.

Unfortunately, it was. Irene spent the whole night with her knife clutched so tightly in her hand that her knuckles were white and her eyes wide open, staring at the side of the tree. At one point, she thought she heard something underneath her tree and at that point was sure that it was some Super Predators taking in Bait's body. She was sure of it when she heard their mandibles clacking and their throaty dialect. They were angry. She figured they were mad because they could smell the human on him but didn't see a trophy anywhere. No dead body, no head, no nothing except for the lingering stench of human blood and a memory of a life that had been stolen.

She was almost sure they were going to find her, there in her little alcove but then she heard more shuffling, a hum and then silence. She let out a breath then, still paranoid that they were going to come after her and kill her for killing the Predator. Or just kill her for the heck of it.

The short night came and Irene was still curled up with the knife, having finally dozed off in the wee hours. But, she awoke to find something dripping on her face. She opened one eye and then she realized that one of her problems had been solved.

It was raining.

That meant that she could move around from place to place if she could refill the canteen from the indents of water! She laughed in spite of herself and then realized that she was not alone in the tree tops.

A large creature that looked almost like a monkey was looking down on her with his big golden eyes. He was rather cute what with his deep almost plum purple and white fur. He had pointed ears like a cat and scaly feet and hands. He blinked down at her and yawned, exposing fangs. She wondered, with horror, if those things were poisonous. He, like her, was enjoying the early morning mist and he held out his scaly hand as if to show her something.

It was an orange fruit about the size of a walnut that held a resemblance to a kumquat. He made a noise like he wanted her to take it and so, hesitantly, she did. She noticed the creature also had another fruit and he dug into it with his fangs, sucking the juices out. She slowly brought the fruit up to her lips and peeled away the outer shell. Underneath, it matched the monkey's fur with its deep purple and slowly, she took a bite. It was sweet and tangy, much better than the fruit that she had eaten on her first day.

She ate the rest of it and then the monkey thing screeched and motioned her to follow. She did and they walked along until the creature showed her a tree laden with the fruit. She gasped for joy and then began picking them. The monkey, who was lighter than he looked, clambered onto her shoulder and began to suck the juices out of another fruit.

_'Cute little bugger,'_ she thought to herself,_ 'I think I'll call you…Kiko.'_

Kiko let out another screech and then led them back to her nest which was now damp. The rain had stopped and unfortunately, it wasn't enough to even fill her canteen, but if it did rain hard enough to do that, she would have to find somewhere else to go because her indent would be full of water.

The two new friends sat in silence, eating their fruit and looking at the other occasionally. Finally, Irene brushed the peels off her lap and looked at her companion who looked back. He looked extremely intelligent and wondered if he, like the monkeys back on earth, was really as intelligent as a five year old.

Then, suddenly, the monkey started screaming and pointing behind her.

* * *

**~*PEACE UP! A TOWN!~***

**Thais Y. 3  
**


	7. New Kid on the Block

**Hello, hello, hello everyone! I have just finished this next chapter while having a VERY interesting conversation with CleverBot. My mom told me not to do another chapter until finals was over but I had so many ideas brewing in my head, I had to make a new one! So please enjoy and I realize that its probably impossible for a human to take down a full grown Yaut'ja but she has her monkey who takes down most of the things anyway. And now we know what those fangs are for! :D**

**And yes, with a little adrenaline, one can do almost anything. XD**

**Anyway, nothing will be coming out until finals are over, but I LOVE YOOOO GUYS!**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!**

**This chapter is dedicated to the only fictional character who has had the decency to flirt with me, Barry Hatch. X3**

**(Yes, I'm aware its just some guy behind the computer screen but its sooooo funny!)**

* * *

She whipped her head around and her eyes landed on something else that enjoyed roaming the treetops that probably wasn't as friendly as the monkey creature. It was a big creature that Irene had never seen before! It had the haunches of a cat but the pointed face of a monster out of her nightmares. It's narrow, green, evil eyes glared back at her and it made a noise that sounded like a cross be a snarl and a word, but what the word was she would never know. She gasped and fumbled around for the knife which she grabbed with a trembling hand. She didn't need this. Not now…

The thing began swaying its head back and forth and she never broke eye contact. Was it her imagination or was the thing transforming into two? The thing continued to swing its head back and forth and Irene continued to feel dizzy and faint. She moaned and almost closed her eyes when the monkey released a scream and sprung from behind her, latching his fangs onto the creature's neck!

It let out a hiss and a howl, shook the monkey away from him and then sprung at Irene. But now, she was ready. She let out a savage scream that shook the leaves and attempted to plunge her knife into the creature's belly.

Unfortunately, the creature was also ready.

It dodged her knife and let out a wild shriek of its own and snapped at Irene's bare feet, nearly taking off a toe. She gasped and scooted backwards, trying to keep herself on the branches, grabbing onto one so tightly she nearly ripped her fingernails out. She hissed in pain and then fell, only her hand catching rather drastic change of elevation. Irene dropped to the next branch and then began running on a branch that had looked like it had been connected to its brethren. To make a long story short, it wasn't, much to her dismay.

She stopped short of the end of the branch and gasped when she saw it didn't go anywhere. The thing stalked her, a ravenous hunger in its eye as it dropped from the branches that they had just been on. She gave a little whimper of fear. Her knife was gone, it having fallen in the scuttle of the fray before. She gripped the wobbly branch for dear life as the thing let out a snarl and advanced towards her. Irene noticed that the monkey's damage was crusting over dark brown and the creature was frothing from the lips. Wondering if there was such a thing as rabies on this planet, Irene scooted farther out onto the rickety branch, the thing following her every move.

Then, suddenly, Kiko jumped from the branches and landed on the creature's right shoulder blade. It let out a howl and started thrashing, but the monkey had already sunk its fangs deep into the black flesh. The beast let out a scream of pure madness, lost his balance and tumbled through the underbrush to the forest floor, its howling ceasing with a large THUD.

Then silence cascaded over the forest once more.

Irene began to breathe again. Her monkey friend had given his life to save her own. Tears sprung to her eyes and gave off a little sniff. She couldn't believe that her first friend in the past month had given his life for her. She realized that she should probably get off the branch to avoid crashing to the tropical jungle down below but she couldn't move. Tears fell down her face and she let out a little whimper of sadness. Then, suddenly, she heard something clambering up the trees.

She tensed, ceasing all movement, praying that whatever was coming up the tree wouldn't smell her or see her. (Even though the last time she had seen a bar of soap and deodorant was about eight months ago.) But, to her amazement, a purple and white head poked up between the foliage and a relieved laugh came out of Irene's battered body. Kiko was alright!

"Oh you clever little monkey!" She laughed and then slowly began to crawl back along the branch to safer ground. This was a hard task because she was shaking so badly but she managed without further incident. When she got back to the trunk, she reached out, grabbed the monkey and kissed him on the head, refusing to let go. "My dear little Kiko…You are the bravest little thing I've ever met!" She said and kissed him once again. The monkey, who apparently liked being held in Irene's arms, started purring contentedly and his little paws reached up and stroked her dreadlocks in comfort for his girl was still shaking violently.

Finally the adrenaline in Irene's body stopped flowing and she felt tired and weak. The day was turning into a warm one and so, without another thought of the beast she had just encountered, she closed her eyes and promptly fell asleep.

Underneath the tree, an Unblooded Jungle Hunter stood and examined the body of the _pta'lor,_ a rather nasty creature that enjoyed attacking Yaut'ja when they weren't looking. He also examined its glassy eyes and dried foam the still clung to his mouth. He let out a soft clicking sound and looked around. He saw nothing out of the ordinary, but he knew very well what had caused the _pta'lor_ to die. It had been bitten by one of the most feared creatures on the Game Planet, a _ctreuka_, a beast so feared that they had been called the offspring of Centanu or "The Dark Warrior." They caused madness in their victims, and had caused many a Hunter to go insane and kill other Yaut'ja before he killed himself or was killed.

Then his eyes found the knife of a Jungle Hunter. He picked it up and twisted it around in his clawed hands. He gave a little hiss of indignation for he smelled ooman on it. How dare a creature so vile touch something that was so valuable to his clan?

He gave out a little roar of aggression and then clenched the knife. He would find the stinking ooman who dared to use a Jungle Hunter knife and slice them down. Suddenly, something moved out of the corner out of his eye in the branches and his head whipped up and he pulled out a _chakt-ra_ and took a step back, clicking softly as he looked for whatever had caused the disruption fluttering in the leaves. He took a step back and tucked the knife into his belt. He heard whatever it was rustling in the treetops again and he looked around slowly, finally catching a glimpse of something that was giving off a heat signature. From the looks of it, it was a female ooman who carried…No…that was impossible…She was carrying a _ki'cti-pa_ similar to those that the enemy tribe carried. His breath hitched in his throat and he quickly turned on his invisibility device and but when he looked back, the ooman was gone! He growled and felt the hairs on his scalp stand up on end, like something was watching him.

He turned around to see the ooman there, but she was like no ooman he had ever seen. From the look of her, she almost had the aura of a female Yaut'ja. She was lean, taut, and muscular and not very small, like other oomans he had faced. She was about two feet shorter than him and she the most terrifying feature of this ooman was the rather large Super Predator mask she wore.

They stood facing each other for a few moments until the Hunter came to the horrible realization that she knew where he was. She let out a deep snarl that almost sounded feral and something purple crawled up her shoulder and bared its fangs at the hunter. He then realized that she was indeed like nothing he had ever seen. She was an ooman who had conquered the jungle and had used its snares to her benefit.

His surprise was enough for her to raise the spear and strike him in the side of the head. He let out a roar of anger and then realized that her blow had affected his cloaking device. He then realized that he had never had the element of surprise. The ooman had known he was there all along.

He then deflected her jab and she rolled out of the way, the spear still clutched in her hand. She came up on one knee and the _ctreuka_ flew up beside her, ready to defend its mistress. He let out a hiss as the Unblooded Hunter realized what a prize the ooman would make. He leaned back on his haunches and sprung into the air like a cat and landed behind her. She didn't have any time to respond and so he jabbed spear his into the small of her back, knocking her onto her stomach. He brought the pointy tip of the spear down into the ground where she lay but where there had once been ooman flesh was nothing more than wet ground. He had plunged the spear into the ground so hard, it had gotten stuck. He roared in anger but had to abandon the spear in the fear that the ooman would take advantage of it. He rolled out of the way as the spear jabbed at his uncovered side.

He extended his _dah'kte_ and the ooman swung her spear once again. He charged at the female who ended up sliding on a patch of mud underneath the deadly blades. He hissed in agitation and then whipped the blades around again and again; she rolled out of the way. However, the third time, he sliced into her shoulder, earning him an angered hiss that made his blood sing. However, he wasn't watching the _ctreuka_ and suddenly, a sharp sting pierced his ankle. With a loud roar, he shook the creature off, earning him a gurgled shriek from the ooman when the beast crashed into a tree.

That's when all of Centanu's madness broke loose.

The ooman was brutal, unlike anything he had ever seen. She had the grace and skill of a Hunter and the agility of a Temple Dancer. The fact that he had injured didn't help much and he went at her, mandibles flared. There was no way he would let an ooman beat him in hand to hand combat. He had been bred to be a warrior, to fight whatever came his way.

Then why in the world was his vision going hazy and a sharp pain in his left lung? He gasped for breath but none came. He willed himself to look down and a soft hissing escaped his mandibles. The damned ooman had gotten him. And now she was taking off her mask and he could see her properly.

She wore the same dreads that other Yaut'ja wore but the most interesting feature on her was the long, deep, slice going down the right side of her face, crossing over one of her eyes and over her grimly set mouth.

He let out another hiss as she grabbed the now blood coated spear and wrenched it out of his body, allowing him to watch his blood trickle down the spear.

"I win," She whispered and as the spear drove into his heart, he literally wished that he had died earlier to avoid this humility.

As the Hunter died, Irene fell to the forest floor and felt weakness enter her body. She needed to get back up into the tree but she doubted she had the strength and if she was on the forest floor, something would smell her easily with the amount of blood she was losing. Somewhere in the fray, she had ended up getting a split lip, a bloody nose and was bruised in places she never thought could get bruised. She crawled over to Kiko and shook him. He was breathing, thank God, but he looked hurt.

"Come on little buddy," She whispered, shaking him softly, "Get up."

He opened his eyes and looked at her and let out a little whimper, "Thank you. You saved my life twice today." She murmured and kissed his head. "Come on; let's get you out of here."

With her last remaining strength, she hauled the monkey up onto her back and looked back at the Hunter's body. She mused about going back down and collecting his gear and then figured that she could come back later and gather it, if she hid it in a good place. So, setting Kiko down, she walked over to the dead Yaut'ja and took off his helmet, his loincloth, his armor and everything else he had on him, including his cloaking device.

She then strapped into a bundle and hid it in the deep crotch of a tree before retreating to the monkey and throwing him over her back before climbing up the tree and disappearing into the canopy.

Several hours later, several Jungle Hunters caught the smell of Yaut'ja blood and ooman and so they went to investigate. They were horrified to find the dead, naked body of one of their comrades with two large holes through his left lung and heart. All his weapons were gone along with his spear and knives. The two looked at each other and then looked around. They saw nothing except ooman footprints in the drying mud and the footprints of something far smaller than the Hunter himself.

The legend of _Lar'ja Sain'ja_ had been born.

* * *

**Translations:**

**_pta'lor:_ My own creation, also the monster that attacked Irene.**

**_ctreuka:_ The monkey creature.**

**_chakt-ra:_ The ninja star thingies they use.**

**_ki'cti-pa_: Spear**

**_Lar'ja __Ooman_ Sain'ja : The Dark Human Warrior**

**That's it. Any questions, comments, or concerns, click the cute little button below and review! :D**

**Thais Y.**


	8. His Ooman

**Who's happy I got this updated? :D Just an FYI, the updates will be coming LIKE FIRE because I'm leaving on the 23rd and won't be back until August 16th or so. (Maybe sooner, maybe later, but who knows?) So I'm going to try and get as many updates as I can get fitted in until I leave to ensure my beautiful and wonderful fans don't rip my throat out, hee hee. XD So...This part of the story gets a little interesting. I looked up a lot on Yaut'ja culture and found that they are most likely a matriarchal society because the women are bigger than the men and they have to choose the male. **

**Other than that, I flew mostly by the seat of my pants on everything else. Usually, Yaut'jan males have multiple mates but I thought, since Irene and Hero were destined to be together (SPOILER) that I would have the males of the queen be able to have mates like humans. (er...oomans) So, if anything seems a little weird, give me a break, its not like I'm the Yaut'jan culture expert here.**

**Anywhoo...Normal this and that...**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!**

**This chapter is dedicated to all my wonderful reviewers and I guess I'll give a shoutout to you guys...**

**2PMPrince, Disastrox, poisedrose, vampireyautja, GrayHuntress, Zyra, Ulquishinee, Luv4Uncas...**

**You guys rock my WORLD! Thanks for your words of encouragement and your little bits of this and that you guys add to each story. You guys are probably the biggest inspiration next to music and movies to me right now and I thank you all!(I know there's more but I'll leave some for the next installment.) :D**

* * *

A year in Irene's time passed. She changed from a somewhat clumsy teenager into a sleek and deadly woman as she fell from eighteen to nineteen. She continued to kill Hunters, only if they wandered into her territory, which was constantly moving. She still loved for the thrill of the hunt, killing without mercy and never left her victims with their dignity, stealing everything from them except their weapons. She had her own weapon, apparently that took care of her prey before she finished them off. From the beginning of her career to the point where she was now, she had killed five Hunters, all Jungle Hunters plus Bait. She became a more legend with each Yaut'ja she killed, and she only attacked individuals with her demon spawn, the ctreuka, and killed them fast, taking their helmets as trophies and stringing them in the trees that she called her home.

Humans had also heard whisperings of her great deeds and began to conjure up images of some super sexy warrior goddess with giant breasts that were scantily clad in a Yaut'ja fashion. They worshiped her even though nobody ever saw her. She was said to live in a deeper, darker place in the jungle.

The Yaut'ja began to actually fear her, sending out large hunting parties to bring her in, but never finding anything except oomans claiming to be her.

Then there was Hero or Nukj'ri to his people, a once favored pup by the Elders and High Monarch, the Queen, since he was one of her sons and next in line for the spot of one of the Elders. He was prized and one of the very few Yaut'jas allowed to take a mate for life, however until that time presented itself; he was content with being picked by the females to father their young. However, none of them as a worthy mate. He wanted a female who was fierce and brave, a female like the ooman he had saved a year ago. She was strong and brave and as far as oomans go, not the worst looking he had ever seen.

His mind still played back to her kind smile but harsh, knowing eyes. Those were the eyes of a killer, hiding under a feminine visage and he now realized why she had been taken from Earth and put on the game planet. She was a fierce warrior when provoked, the perfect sort of game for the Yaut'ja to hunt. He was almost sure that something had probably killed her long after their battle. Even with the knife and spear, she still was only an ooman and could barely fight off Bait without his help.

He looked up and saw three Yaut'ja enter the hall where he stood, and they softly hissed, a non-hostile gesture, but one of great importance. Nukj'ri bowed slightly and then his left lower mandible twitched, a movement not unnoticed by the lead Yaut'jan official.

"Why do you flinch, Nukj'ri?" The leader mocked and the others laughed darkly. Nukj'ri did not say anything even though his blood was boiling and his hands itched to shove a spear through Bo'stais' mandibles and roar in triumph over his wriggling body.

**_"You have been summoned by The Queen,"_** He spoke in his metallic voice and Nukj'ri didn't flinch this time. He followed the officials down the hall and final they stopped at a giant bronze-like door that had just gotten a new design. Now, a female ooman stood triumphant, holding the spear of the Super Predator in one and the head of a Yaut'ja in the other. Her fabled pet a demonic ctreuka, bared its deadly fangs, ready to defend its mistress. She also wore the mask that was almost so ghastly that Nukj'ri had to turn away from it, hissing slightly. Bo'stais chuckled darkly.

**_"Scared of a little ooman, are you?"_** He laughed and Nukj'ri snarled softly. He knew this Yaut'ja and knew what a coward he was in the face of danger. But, Nukj'ri knew when to hold his tongue and he did so now. The doors were opened and the four Yaut'jan males walked down a giant hall until the stooped in a bow. The queen was far larger than even Bo'stais was and she looked down on her sons in utter distaste.

_**"My sons,"**_ She said and they stood. Bo'stais flared his mandibles out at his little brother and then motioned for him to take a step closer. She looked at Nukj'ri is particular and her eyes narrowed,**_ "You have been called upon by Paya to join in the hunt for this Lar'ja Sain'ja and bring her back to me. This ooman is nothing more than an abomination and must be dealt with in the strictest ways possible!"_** With that word, she slammed her taloned fist down onto her throne to make her point.**_ "Bo'stais, you will search in the north while Ksyker searches in the east. Lnom'ky will search in the south and,"_** Her eyes flicked to Nukj'ri, the youngest of her sons and daughters. **_"You will search in the west, Nukj'ri."_**

She stood up and clapped her hands together. **_"You will leave me at first light tomorrow and each will find his own destiny. You are all dismissed. Get your things together and if you find her…"_** Here a shadow flickered across her face, **_"You are not to kill her but bring her back alive. She will make a…interesting spoil of the game planet."_**

The four brothers paid their respects to the queen then the Ancients and walked from the throne room slowly, each one having different ideas of how to make this ooman suffer for her crimes. Nukj'ri stepped out into the methane rich environment. He watched as a Yaut'jan ship passed silently and glanced over at his second eldest brother, Ksyker.

**_"What do you think she will do?"_** He asked and Lnom'ky snorted darkly, his mandibles turning up into a sneer.

**_"What do you think she's going to do? Teach us how to dance? She'll try and kill us and we have to try and kill her first."_**

**_"But we can't kill her,"_** Lnom'ky pointed out, touching his wrist blades in thought, **_"We have to bring her back here."_**

**_"But we can do other things to her,"_** Bo'stais smirked and then clapped his brother's armored shoulder with his meaty paw, **_"Make her scream louder than she's ever screamed. I bet she would be an interesting mate."_**

Ksyker whipped his head around and glared at his eldest brother, **_"Don't say such things! You would be exiled and left to die on the Game Planet if you even thought about making her your mate, let alone bedding her like some animal."_**

Bo'stais shrugged and smirked, crossing his arms over his extremely broad chest. He was tall; taller than most of the Jungle Hunters with mottled black and green skin that looked somewhat wet. His glittering eyes observed his younger brothers and he let out a scoff, **_"If I had my way, I would take that ooman, show her that we are the dominant species. Besides,"_** he began walking away slowly, **_"She would probably be an unforgettable bedmate."_**

* * *

****They were on the small cruiser at sunrise, decked out in enough armor to cover a large elephant. As soon as they had docked down in one of the hidden landings, they bid their farewells and took off in their separate directions. The ooman was known to move around quite a bit but Nukj'ri wanted to search in a particular place.

The ooman that he had saved had probably died soon after their encounter what with her dislocated shoulder. After their encounter, he had gone and killed several oomans and had been Blooded like those warriors before him.

He trekked through the jungle, ignoring the shapes he sometimes saw. He wore his cloaking device only to not be shot at oomans. He needed to focus on finding Lar'ja Sain'ja and even though he wanted to, he had to keep his mind clear and free of distractions.

He traveled for a few more hours, watching the tree branches for any signs of movement. It was rumored that was where she liked to hide, waiting for her prey.

Finally, after backtracking several times, Nukj'ri heard a soft voice as smooth as velvet and as deadly as the ctreuka's fangs and he looked up in the trees, looking for the source of the voice. It was in English, but he had a fair enough grasp on the language to pick up most of the sonnet that she was now reciting.

_"In darkness of the night_

_I spied her in a tree_

_Sat I froze by the sight_

_She was looking at me_

_The summer's heat became a chill_

_The angel of death at her kill..."_

His head whipped around but he still couldn't see her. The voice was strangely familiar…but he couldn't quite tell where he had heard it before. That's when he caught a glimpse of something moving in the treetops, its heat signature giving it away. He withdrew his spear and failed to hear the silent thump of a warrior until he heard her dark little chuckle. His head whipped around and he saw her.

"I am Death Cometh," She said softly and then he saw her in her whole full and glory.

She wasn't big by anyone's standards, standing and about a good two to three feet smaller than him. She wore a loincloth and had wrapped strips of cloth under her feet to keep her from falling out of the tree. Everything else she wore was obviously stolen from her kills for she wore the armor and cloaking device that any Yaut'jan warrior wore.

But it was her mask that really caught his eye. It was horrific, like the one in the Queen's Chamber had been, but this one was far worse. It was covered in all manner of things and the mask designer had added a snarling maw into the beaten metal. Around her waist she wore a belt of five mandibles, clacking together in the slight movements she made. Those were her trophies. She had become the Blooded.

He snarled at the ooman and he heard her scoff behind her metal mask. The silence between them cascaded like a blanket and was only broken when a white and purple creature crawled from the tree trunk and onto his mistresses shoulder, baring his fangs at him in warning.

Turn back now.

Nukj'ri had had been dreaming of killing her for so long that he didn't back down but now unsheathed his wrist blades. She did the same with her own and then, suddenly, her demon leapt at the unprotected side of his chest.

The demon didn't quite make it. Nukj'ri was fast. Faster than the demon and faster than the girl because as soon as it had leapt for him, he had drawn his wrist blades up and they entered the creatures body like hot butter. Golden blood splashed everywhere and the ctreuka became puppet-like and his breaths ceased, his head lolling forward.

The creature was dead.

He looked up to see the ooman going at him with deadly speed, obviously fueled by the rage of her pet dying.

"YOU FUCKING BASTARD! YOU KILLED MY KIKO!" She suddenly screamed and her wrist blades were met with his. She let out a gargled scream and broke away, pulling out her spear in one swift movement. She swung it and he blocked it, blocking everything she could throw at him. Obviously without her ctreuka, she was nothing more than an ooman that was rather talented at swinging a spear. She let out another roar of fury and suddenly, she feigned swinging up but she held the spear in two hands and jabbed it into his unprotected flesh, opening a large gash on the right side. He let out a roar and batted the spear, pulling out his own in the process. Two could play at this game.

She went tumbling back but caught herself on one knee. Her grip tightened on the spear and she came back towards him, blocking and dodging as well as jabbing herself. He finally got through her defenses and caught her arm where he left a deep puncture wound. She hissed in agony and looked at her arm where a pearl of crimson was slowly forming. She swore in Yaut'jan, a strange feat for an ooman and then whipped her dreadlocks back in his direction.

They were back in battle before either could catch their breath. Nukj'ri had to admit, she was good. Better than any ooman he had ever encountered, but then again, she was like no other ooman he had ever met.

That's when the battle turned in his favor. He curled up on his haunches and then leapt over her, taking her by absolute surprise. She didn't even have time to do anything before he took the blunt end of his spear and whacked her in the unprotected backside of her head. She let out a little gasp and then fell to her knees, her masked eyes unseeing. Finally, she tumbled to the ground and now Nukj'ri could take off her mask, which he did now.

He nearly fell backwards when he took it off.

It was his ooman, the one he had saved one year ago from the claws of a Super Predator. She was his spoil of war. Her dark red dreadlocks had gotten thicker and beads from her dead Yaut'ja prey littered the damaged hair. Her face had changed drastically. No more was the baby fat or the smiling façade but a hardened visage with many scars, the most noticeable being four long marks that covered her right eye and traveled down her face, stopping at her chin. Those were the marks that had been given to her so long ago by her worst enemy.

The only innocence she had left on her womanly face was the shock of freckles that still covered her nose. He looked at her once more and he slowly removed his own helmet.

She couldn't die, not when he wanted to see her so bad. She was his ooman, a part of him and there was no way he could let her die, not while he was involved.

In an act of desperation, he took out his knife and carved two symbols onto her left cheek, exactly opposite from a marking she had on the other cheek. The symbols were Yaut'jan for "mate." He knew if he didn't appeal to the court right, he could be exiled and possibly loose his life, but he wanted her to be safe.

She was his ooman, after all.

* * *

**Whoo! All done with THAT chapter. I'm still deciding how to make this all pan out, but it'll be good, trust me. :)**

**With all my love, **

**Hannah **

**(Hero=Nukj'ri, just in case some people didn't quite get that.) :D**

**(The poem is also not mine. It belongs to someone named Yura but I felt it was rather appropriate.)**


	9. According to Plan

**Hooooly mother of Paya, nine chapters in and we're still going hella strong! :D**

**I told you guys I would be throwing out updates here every few days! I hope you guys are enjoying this as much as I've been writing it because its been an adventure in itself. **

**NOW...for culture...I based Yaut'jan females on females from Sparta (yeah, I hear you over there Gerard) because Spartan women were trained to fight to keep themselves safe from males, they needed to be able to defend themselves, which we will see in the next chapter or two. (Although I DON'T think they had a goddess of fertility. Or at least, I didn't see one but that doesn't mean they didn't have one.) **

**So, while Irene is an Amazon, they are Spartans. Go figure. :)**

**I told myself I wasn't going to do this but I WOULD LOVE SOME REVIEWS! IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO SAY ABOUT THE STORY! PLEASE DON'T HESITATE TO GIVE ME CRITIQUES OR PRAISES! (I'm a strong person, just don't be a bitch about it!)**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!**

**REVIEWERS WILL BE GIVEN A COOKIE AND A JUICEBOX FOR THEIR TROUBLES!**

* * *

The first thing that Irene was aware of was her pounding head. The second thing she noticed was her lack of weapons. She moaned and willed her eyes to open. They screamed in protest and she finally had the courage to sit up and look around at her surroundings. She was in a large, dark stone cell with a breathing apparatus over her nose and mouth. The only source of light came from a fluorescent tube from the top of cell and that was in dire need of fixing.

Her body ached and her mind was raw. She realized in horror that she had been captured and as she realized this, her stomach did loop-de-loops in her body. She was going to die at the hands of the Predator that captured her.

She wondered why he hadn't killed her but had brought her back to…wherever he was from. Irene sat up and groaned, touching the goose egg on the back of her head. Then the remembrance of Kiko's death made tears come to her eyes.

"What have I done…?" She whispered behind her breathing apparatus and she closed her eyes, allowing the tears to fall onto the stone of the cell. Her beautiful little companion was dead…

Her head snapped up as someone undid the cell wall and four Yaut'jan guards entered. She didn't want to seem frightened, but it was hard and so she backed up against the cell wall to make herself look as small as possible. The guards grabbed her roughly enough to make her cry out in anger and pain and dragged her to her feet, allowing her to hiss as she realized her ankle had been sprained in the fray. She wished, beyond anything, that she had the warmth of her monkey's body clinging to her neck and his clever little chitters in her ear. They had worked out a sort of language in the past year, when she wasn't scavenging.

In the past year, she had gone from a girl who could barely wield a blade (as she found while she trained with trees and Kiko) to a woman who fought things that killed her kind for fun. However, each time she fought one, the one that took its place would be stronger, quicker, and fiercer, giving her new challenges and new opportunities to learn. But, they also gave her bruises and broken bones where she thought she could never get them. She had brush Death so many times that she believed that they were old friends and He was just waiting patiently to dance that final song with her.

But, to her relief, he never swept her into his arms and carried her away. She had gotten so sick once that she thought she was going to die and even WISHED for death more than once. But, with the help of Kiko, she had gotten better, had regained her strength and for that, became a better huntress.

They cuffed her hands behind her back and then said something in their throaty dialect, mandibles flayed in utter disgust. She couldn't say she blamed them. She had killed their brothers and family, maybe their fathers and sons.

They half supported, half led her down a hall illuminated by the same fluorescent light that lit up the inside of her cell. After almost two years of natural light, the artificial stuff made her eyes water and gave her a headache.

They walked for about five minutes, going up silent elevators and down long corridors until they reached their destination. It was a hangar with a sleek looking ship that was flanked by even more Yaut'ja in helmets with nasty looking spears, far nastier than Irene's had ever been, strapped to their backs. They snarled at her and strapped her into a seat as she was made to sit down, not saying anything, but they allowed a strand of blue light to cross over ankles, wrists and her middle. Looking down, she could see that they had also taken her belt of mandibles, the bastards. The only thing she could turn was her head and that she did with gusto.

The place she had entered was far from her world. She had a feeling they were no longer on the game planet because she had to use a breathing apparatus for reasons she didn't know. She had an idea it was the air that she couldn't breathe and as she tested the binds, she caught a Yaut'ja looking at her with wary eyes. They all worse masks but she couldn't blame them. They were all as ugly as sin.

She looked around the landscape. Lush green covered almost every little space and where they didn't, tall buildings reached towards the sky made of some unknown alloy. Birds that she had never seen before with bright colors flew every which way and it looked like pyramids that had qualities similar to all the great races that used them pierced the tree line.

Ships flew in every each direction, as silent and graceful as the birds they were probably designed after, however none of them were as big as the ship that Irene was currently in.

A ripple of terror went through her body as they docked and her hands were once again cuffed behind her back and she was sent shuffling forward, the Yaut'jan guards shoving her along harshly. The building was bigger than the rest of them and guards were positioned every few yards. They all glared at her when she passed and made a sign like the Ancient Greeks did when warding off evil. She watched them all do this and she whipped her head back to the front as they entered through a pair of seamlessly sliding doors.

They now entered another hallway with many intricate carvings of Yaut'ja in the heat of the hunt, killing her kind and ripping their entrails from their bodies. She also saw pictures of the creature that had attacked her right after she killed Bait and monkeys like her dear little Kiko, bearing their fangs, ready to strike fearless warriors.

Then she saw it.

It was a giant carving of a creature that could have been the Grim Reaper in her world. Below its feet was a woman who wore the traditional Yaut'jan garb complete with the helmet, armor, and belt sporting the helmets of those she killed. In her hand, she held a helmet, as if she was examining it. Her wild hair flew out behind her in the bronze wind, decorated with bones, feathers, and beads. She was, to put it gently, a warrior goddess.

Her faithful monkey bared its fangs, ready to defend and defeat with his master. At her feet, the bones of the fallen she had destroyed with the spear strapped to her back, radiating power.

With horror, Irene realized that it was a very exaggerated representation of herself. She was a disciple of Death, an Angel of Pain and Suffering. She was a servant of this Dark God and the Yaut'ja knew that. She had become a legend.

The doors opened, obscuring her rather unrealistic picture and a blast of angry roars greeted her ears. The guards shoved her forward and Yautja's on either side of the room tried to lunge at her, grab her throat out of her body, cease her deadly activities once and for all.

Suddenly, a Yaut'jan at the front of the room stood from their throne and held up their hand. All movement ceased and now, realized with a strange feeling, that the Yaut'ja standing in front of her was a female Predator!

She, like other mammals, had breasts and she was larger than the males. That led Irene to think that the Predators were probably mammals, just like her. Strange to think that something so foreign could share something so common with her.

"Ooman," The Predator spoke in a deep, thickly accented voice in English, "We finally met, face to face. Did you like my tribute to you on my chamber door? You are certainly a legend amongst our clan and those of the Giants."

Irene didn't speak. She didn't know what to say. She hadn't said anything in almost a year and now, she was being addressed by a Yaut'ja that was obviously powerful. The female splayed her mandibles suddenly and roared, "ANSWER ME, OOMAN! YOU ARE FEARED BEYOND ALL COMPARISON!"

"And what am I supposed to say?" Irene demanded, feeling a flush coat her cheeks in crimson. "That I am proud of what I've done to your people? It's THEM that have made the way I am! I fight because of them, to protect myself and to give people a glimmer of hope of surviving. You portray me as a goddess of Death! But really, I'm nothing more than a girl trying to defend herself from the dangers that you and your people pose!"

The Yaut'ja female looked like she was about to say something else but then stopped herself and continued in that deep voice, "You have done things that would have elevated you to the level of one of my most elite Hunters IF you were a Yaut'ja. You would have had first pick in mates and first pick of homes. But Paya has looked down upon you and frowned and instead made us your enemies…"

"Don't pity me because I'm not like you," Irene retorted darkly and the female snarled deep in her throat, "Pity me because I'm not still out there, defending the people who really need to be defended!"

The female let out a roar and narrowed her eyes, "You were the first ooman to ever make it onto our walls of history, as a Demon! You ARE a Demon! Do not deny that you are a monster sent from Centanu, destroying the unworthy!"

"I don't deny anything!" She cried out and felt the tears begin to form. She was going to die at the hands of the tyrannical queen. The Queen stepped back and fell into her chair, rubbing her naked temples with her clawed hand. She made a little noise in the back of her throat and Irene felt the guards lifting her up and they slammed her head down onto a cold block with so much force, she saw stars. She started squirming and crying and actually BEGGING for mercy. She didn't want to die. She couldn't believe that she was doing it, but indeed she was. She began to pray to whatever God had brought her here to begin with and as she heard the crowd roar in approval of her terrifying execution, the Queen roared in a word that was not in English.

The whole world stopped as Irene was pulled harshly to her feet and found herself staring into the ugly face of the queen.

The noises faded into a din as the Queen's talons traced something on the side of her face. She murmured a word and then snarled angrily, throwing Irene back down. She let out a howl as her jaw connected with the floor and she tasted blood.

She began shouting in their native language as she looked at four large males who stood silent and still against the wall. One was slightly smaller than the others and one was larger but each had a formidable look about them. And was it her imagination or did one of them look familiar…

The Queen whipped her head back towards Irene who had rolled over onto her back, panting through her apparatus. Suddenly, someone was taking off her shackles and she was massaging her aching wrists. One of the males was stepping forward and placing a hand on his chest and the Queen was flying into a rage.

Now it was dawning on the others in the room too. The rage and protest moved like the ripple effect and finally, the whole room was in an uproar. Only Irene didn't know what was going on until the Queen grabbed her and threw her into the arms of the smaller Yaut'ja who had just stood up. She looked up into his face and her visage twisted in disgust and rage.

"YOU!" She screamed and stepped away from him.

"You should be happy, ooman!" The Queen snarled, "He just saved your life!"

"What…what are you talking about?" She demanded, her voice shaking now.

"He has chosen you as his mate," She growled, "And unfortunately, he has saved your head…for now."

Irene felt as if her heart had started pumping blood again. But at what cost? To be the bride of a Yaut'ja? She shivered involuntary and suddenly, her world began to spin. She stumbled backwards and was caught in the arms of her captor and savior.

"I don't…" She began to say but her legs felt weak and her head spun so much that she almost collapsed but was held tight against a warm, beating heart. She clung to it like a child in the night as her vision was filled with darkness, the screams of anger still echoing in her ears.

* * *

When Irene came to for the second time, she was wearing something completely different and lying in a hammock and her breathing apparatus was gone. She moaned and stretched her body out, earning her pops and cracks. She looked around and saw that it was now night time and the other hammocks around her were full. She wondered where she could be and she slowly lowered herself from her hammock. She now wore no more cloaking device, no armor and no beads in her dreads. The night was warm and she could hear music unlike anything she had ever heard drifting from somewhere below her window through the trees.

Her loincloth and piece of cloth to keep her breasts in place was gone and instead she wore a skirt that was gathered on one side with a red stone, leggings and something that resembled a bikini top. She blushed and from the soft glowing lights, found stairs and slowly descended them. She needed to get out of there, FAST!

She came out into a huge room and found herself staring up into deathly terrifying mask of a female Yaut'ja whom held a spear, ready to strike down her enemies. She was huge too, probably over thirty feet tall and the only reason Irene didn't wet herself then and there was the fact that she was stone. In the soft light, it illuminated her just right to be ferocious but still a statue.

As soon as her breathing got back under control, she whipped her head around to see a very old Yaut'ja, watching her with narrowed eyes. She gasped and took a step back, towards the state. The elder also took a step towards her and finally, she felt the cold stone of the statue on her exposed back.

The elder began speaking in a throaty dialect and Irene slowly shook her head, showing the Yaut'ja she couldn't understand what she was saying. The Predator made a noise like scoffing and then continued in English.

"You oomans…" She said in a throaty, hard-to-understand accent, "Always so closed minded."

"Excuse me," She said softly, "But…I was about to have my head chopped off. What's going on? I mean, not like I'm not grateful or anything but…"

"You were saved by the grace of one of the Queen's favorite sons," She interrupted. "He has chosen you to be his mate, a very high honor. The Queen does not approve of it, of course, and the only thing that saved her son from exile was the fact that you have done things that no ooman has done before. It's unheard of…but…You are a strange case."

"So, if he's chosen me for his mate," Irene said slowly, still taking in that she had been chosen, "where am I and why am I not still in my cell, waiting for whatever comes my way?"

The Yaut'ja splayed her mandibles in an almost pitying way, "Each female here has been chosen by a son of the Queen. Usually, females choose their mates, but this is only until the female carries the pup. We are chosen by the sons as mates. I believe in your world they are called wives. We still dominate them in every way though."

"So, where are we?" Irene asked and the old Yaut'ja looked up at the spear wielding statue.

"We are in the Temple of Paya, the mother goddess of all. She is the mother of all and her husband, Centanu, even bends to her will. The chosen females are brought here to learn the ways of becoming a lifelong mate and so…here you are. Nobody likes the fact you are here though, but you have already begun your training. Each day, you will leave the Temple and go to your mate who will teach you the ways of our planet and culture. You are also a dancer in this temple meaning that you will be back here every night unless…" If the female had lips, they would have been set into a sly smirk, "Something happens."

Irene scoffed and looked towards the open door. Lights dotted the trees and she couldn't hear the music anymore. "I don't think anything would happen between us."

"You'd be surprised," The elder said softly, "Males can be very…persuasive."

Irene smiled bitterly and then rubbed her head, "Yeah, well, don't worry about me. Nothing's gonna happen."

The old Yaut'ja looked down at the lights too and then her gaze softened, "Along with a dancer, I will be teaching you our language."

Irene, who was going back up to bed, whipped her hear around, "oh don't even bother. I suck at learning all languages. Just talk to my Spanish teacher."

She cocked her head and splayed her mandibles, "What is this Spanish you speak of?"

Irene laughed softly and then smiled, "Well…Thanks." She said and the female nodded, "I mean, for not killing me and stuff. I think this is the first time ever that I've been welcomed by a Yaut'ja."

She turned on her heel, but then a noise made her turn around once more, "What is your name, ooman?"

Irene thought for a moment and then thought back to a day that she had spent with her dad so long ago. They had visited a grave of a relative and Irene was so little, she went around looking all the different names on the stones. She had found the name of a young woman who was about as old as her with the name the meant "little warrior." She had wanted to changer her name so long to this afterwards and now…She had a chance.

She closed her eyes, savoring the memory, a ghost of a smile crossed her lips for a split second and she finally spoke.

"Call me… Cheveyo…Little Warrior."

* * *

Ah, yes, she has taken on a new title. Again. For like, the third time?

Anywhoo, please don't hesitate to leave me a review because I loooooove them! :)(I always get so excited when I see them in my email!)

PEACE!  
Hannah

***Edit*** Paya, I have just found out, is a female deity. Thanks my anonymous friend! :D


	10. Whoops

**Holy fricking crap. Two chapters in two days. I'm on a ROLL! :D **  
**We have just hit a MARK ladies and...more ladies...(Are there any men honestly reading my story?) For we have just hit the 10th chapter mark! (Insert applause here) I really hope you guys are enjoying this because there's A LOT more to come (I'm thinking about another 20 or so chapters about this length or longer) because I have the plot sitting right next to me in this pretty little notebook here. **

**Thank you to Random who pointed out to me that Paya is a female deity because I would have still been thinking SHE was a HE if you hadn't told me. **

**My grip on Yaut'jan culture is very loose because I've only seen the last Predator movie and AvP 1 & 2 so I'm seriously just going from what I can guess so please don't sue me, just go with it and enjoy the ride. **  
**My biggest condolences to my new reviewers, hopefully full time readers Hyisenth, Kathalla, NejisDarkNymph and of course, the woman who has been pushing me through this from chapter one...**

**Ulquishinee! (Thanks chicka, you ROCK MY WORLD!)**

**So...if you feel inclined, review, if not, just read and maybe add it to your favorites or alerts because its gonna get pretty AWESOMEEEE! :D**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!**

* * *

Irene opened her eyes again and found herself swinging in the hammock. She stretched once more and looked around. Most of the females were already up and those who were walking through a large arch into another room.

One of the females looked up and made eye contact with a female and she glared at her. She turned to the other females she was sitting with and they began talking loudly and very rapidly in their language and it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that they were talking about her.

She slipped out of her hammock and someone scoffed at her.

"Little oomans do not belong in the Temple of Paya," Someone said and she was pushed from behind. She stumbled slightly until the elder Yaut'jan female she had met the night before came in and touched her shoulder.

"I have brought you your things," She said and handed me a parcel that I didn't recognize. Inside there was something that could have been soap, something that resembled a toothbrush that was curved, and other bits of this and that. "You may use the bath houses like the other females. They should not bother you." With this, she glared at the one who had spoken to her. "After you are done, meet me in the main temple. We work on your language today."

Irene nodded and then walked into the bath house. It resembled one from Ancient Greece with the same sort of tile work and mosaics. Smells that she had never smelled before wafted up to greet her and the warm water looked like heaven. She felt as if she was in a trance as she stripped from the clothes someone had put her in and slipped into the deliciously hot water, oblivious to the nasty glares she was receiving.

Finally, after some time, she opened the bag she had received and looked inside. The soap had to be the best thing she had ever seen and there was something that could have been a razor also lay on top of the soap. She lifted her armpits and exclaimed in disgust. They were harrier than Sasquatch.

Finally, after feeling more like a woman that she had in almost two years, she stepped out of the bath house, trying to stay out of the way of the larger females that were obviously out to get her.

She walked back down the stairs that she had found the night before and found the elder Yaut'ja sitting in a corner, making a clicking noise in the back of her throat, her eyes closed in meditation.

"Um, excuse me…" Irene began and she opened an eye.

"Little Warrior," She handed her another bundle full of something she had to take as food. "Eat up; you have a big day ahead of you."

Like Irene had said. She wasn't very good with languages. At the end of several hours, she had learned three words and a bit more about their culture. At last, the other females came back into the chamber and then walked back up the stairs.

"Where are they going?" She asked the elder and the woman motioned to the males who were beginning to come in the chamber.

"They are going to put their costumes on," She explained, her mandibles twitching in excitement, "It's time for the dance."

She wasn't allowed to go upstairs with them because she didn't know their moves, but the elder promised she would know in time. Finally, all the males were seated and a group of musicians with instruments that were totally foreign to her started playing an upbeat tempo and the females took their spots. Suddenly, one looked up and roared and the other followed until Irene was covering her ears and laughing in spite of herself. The dancers began to truly dance and the way the flowed was astonishing. Each move melted into the next as they spun and used spears to propel them through the air.

Irene was entranced. She had always dreamt of being a dancer like this, so powerful, yet so graceful, and stunning.

As soon as the dance had started, it ceased and the females melted into the crowds of males. They all reminded Irene of penguins; each sound helped them find their mate in the sea of bodies. Suddenly, a call that made Irene's body freeze up and the elder Predator made a noise sort of between a chuckle and coo.

"He calls you," She said and pushed Irene forward until she came face to face with the creature she was supposed to be the mate of. She felt so much pent up frustration and anger towards him. He had killed her best friend and then had the nerve to bring her in. She didn't say anything but felt a mad blush creeping up her cheeks whenever she thought of being his mate and doing…what mates do…

She shook the thought of her head and then glared up at the Predator. "So," She demanded in a harsh voice, "What do you expect me to do?"

He cocked his head and then slowly, he reached up and tugged on one of her dreads. The motion felt so familiar but yet so vague and distant. She turned her head away and as a deep growl grew in his throat. She knew what it meant.

_ Be grateful, I just saved your life._

She looked back at him and she could feel his glare on her naked flesh burning his way into her core that had been hidden for so long behind a walnut-like shell.

Two could play at this game.

She glared back and finally, the Hunter, who wore his mask just like every other Predator in the temple, looked away, his dreadlocks swinging over his shoulder. Irene now noticed his clothing was far different than those on the game planet. Here they wore only loincloths and he had something strapped to his back that could have been a spear but was far less ornamental than those used on the Game Planet or the one she had gotten from Bait.

He motioned for her to follow and so she did, reluctantly, of course. Irene winced when the hot sunlight hit her eyes and she inhaled the smell of farts, a telltale sign of methane. She wrinkled her nose and covered her nose with her hands. So this is why she had needed a breathing apparatus! But…why didn't she have it now? She could die in an environment like this!

He turned around to see her horrified expression and he made a sound like a guttural laugh. He then pointed to his throat and so slowly, she took one hand from her nose and traced her windpipe with delicate fingers. Suddenly, her fingers brushed against a strange bump and she gasped, realizing what this was. They had gone in and put something inside of her that would convert the air here into something breathable! She let out a sigh of relief and exasperation and then looked back at her hunter.

It was weird to think that he was technically, HER hunter, even though he had already bagged and tagged his prey. And now, he was marrying her. Sort of like a bear finding out that she's going to wed a big game hunter.

He was looking at her still, waiting for her to come with him. She took a deep breath, regretting it as soon as the air hit her nostrils and then began to walk with the hunter down the steps of the pyramid.

Irene found herself on a cobblestone-esque street with Hunters on either side of her, towering over her and snarling whenever she got too close, some making the same sign that the guard did sometime earlier. She found herself scooting closer and closer to the Yaut'ja and finally, she was almost clinging to him, to his amusement.

He watched her change from an almost arrogant, strong, proud ooman to a something he would have killed in a heartbeat. Nukj'ri snarled and pushed her away gently. She gasped and almost fell over but to his relief, an angry fire licked at her soul.

She swore angrily and sulked behind him, ignoring the snarls and gestures she got now. He laughed and then continued to weave his way between bulky shoulders and thick dreadlocks, Irene staying right on his tail.

She couldn't help feeling intrigued with all the activities. Most of the edifices down here consisted of houses and she could see younger predators with blunt spears practicing their fighting skills with each other. As she watched they turned to her, gawking as they went, watching her face with their mandibles hanging open. Finally, as she passed, they ran to the next house and told the sucklings in that house that they had just seen the demon. She sighed and followed the hunter down the street until they reached something that resembled a field. He motioned for her to follow him into the sealed in patch of grass-like material and closed the barrier behind them with a wave of his arm.

Irene crossed her hands over her chest and narrowed her eyes. "Alright, you've got my attention. What are we doing here?"

He let out a soft cackling noise and then said something that Irene couldn't understand. She had a feeling that he could understand her but she couldn't understand him. Suddenly, a blunt spear sailed towards her face and she just barely caught it. She did so and tested its weight in her hands. It was lighter than her old spear, but it was still far longer than what humans would usually use.

He unhooked his own spear from his back and it extended into a full sized spear. Now it dawned on her. He was training her for whatever challenges lay ahead! She smirked inwardly as they began to pace around each other in a circle, almost like two tango dancers, ready to embrace passionately.

The dance began.

He came at her first, feigning strikes to the right but actually going to the left. Irene was ready for him, dodging and parrying his strikes as they came for her. It was her time to be on defense, a point she never really was comfortable with, even when she was in the jungle. Suddenly, his spear traveled so close to her face, she could literally feel the air tickle the end of her nose. She just barely got back in time and suddenly, she whipped her spear around and began to deliver her own strikes, each one was blocked, but she was forcing him back.

He growled angrily and suddenly, he blocked her so hard that her spear was caught on his and he whipped it away, into the bushes that lined the far eastern side of the field. She gasped and he pointed his spear right at her throat.

But this dance was far from over.

Irene ducked and rolled a trick she had learned watching her third kill try and defeat her, and grabbed the knife that was strapped into its holster around the Yautja's thigh. She came up with it and then held it at arm's length.

Then her eyes traveled farther down the knife's surface. This knife seemed so familiar in her hands as if it had been hers in a previous life. She held up a hand in surrender and then stood up, still examining the blade. It had been through some definite trials, she could see it on its marked handle and suddenly, while turning it over, she whipped her head up so quickly she could have given herself whiplash. Her face was white and her eyes were wide as all the pieces of this gruesome puzzle fell into place.

"Hero?"

The Yaut'ja sighed softly and slipped his mask off, letting it hang by his side. And indeed, it was her Hero. He had mottled golden colored skin with black and dark red spots and his eyes were an orangey color. His mandibles twitched slightly and she took a step forward towards him.

"Oh Hero…" She murmured and touched the side of his face. He closed his eyes, relishing her touch and then, there was something rather hard hitting him over the head. "YOU NO GOOD ROTTEN SON OF A BITCH! I FUCKING HATE YOU I HATE YOU!" She screamed as she beat him as hard as she could with his blunt spear until he managed to wrench it out of her hands and then she went to work beating him with her fists. After several moments of that, the hitting ceased and she then began sobbing and she clung to him still telling him how much she hated him.

As her sobs turned into dry heaves and finally, she was silent, Nukj'ri sighed and looked up to the sky.

_Paya, what had he done…_

* * *

**Hero's got a lot on his hands now, doesn't he? And what will become of our little Irene whom was once the most feared thing on the Game Plane? **

**Hmmm...Stayed tuned my fabulous readers! There is more a'comin!**

**Hannah~3**

**P.S. There's this cute little button down here called a review. It needs some luvin'. :3**_  
_


	11. Getting Warmer

**Holy fricking crap. I have done NOTHING all day except write for you amazing people. Everyone who has reviewed and even READ this story has a special place in my heart and I love you all. **  
**Thanks to all my new reviewers, you guys ROCK MY SOCKS! (There are too many of you to name you all and my hands are tired of typing so after this, I'm going to bed and reading Hannibal) **  
**So, unfortunately, Hero gets saved from butt kicking BUT, I think there will be some more stuff in there you guys are going to LOVE! Thank you Khalthar for the amazing story ideas and the FREAKING AMAZING REVIEW! I love you like so much right now! If you want someone to thank for the ridiculously fast review, go thank him because I couldn't just let those ideas just sit there unnoticed! :D **  
**Anyway, if you guys want updates to come this fast, REVIEW! Its like...the energy drink that keeps me going!**  
**Thanks to everyone who has stuck with this story since the beginning!**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!**

* * *

_"My heart booms at the speed of light_  
_ But the exit signs always on my mind, always in my sight._  
_ I can say that I really want to stay, _  
_ But the devil inside always wins the fight, always gets his way..."_

* * *

Irene stormed back to the temple, ignoring the jeers and glares she received. She wanted to go curl up into a hole and die! She had no allies here, just false pretenses that fell away with the revelation of her Hero.

She swore angrily as a stone went flying, making her bare toe start to bleed. She swore again and then realized that she was lost.

She whirled around but in her fury she had taken a wrong turn and now…

"Little oomans should not wander about by themselves," A guttural sounding voice said and she whipped her head around to stare into the very well-toned chest of a male that looked rather familiar. He had the same red and black blotches that Hero did but a very different facial expression. While Hero looked more like he would comfort her, this Hunter looked like he was going to eat her face off or something along those lines.

"Well, I got lost you see…" She began but suddenly, a taloned finger, the size of a large kosher sausage landed on her lips, silencing her excuses.

"Understandable," He said and then chuckled darkly, "You are new to this planet." They began walking in the direction she had come and Irene couldn't help feeling like she was going to be attacked or worse…

The ghost of Luke bubbled up inside her but she quickly silenced it. "You are so famous amongst the Yaut'ja it's amazing they treat you the way they do." He said in his strange voice and Irene looked at him.

"You're one of the Queen's sons," She pointed out bluntly, "One of the ones that were sent to hunt me."

He chuckled once again but this time it was a bitter noise, almost more of a growl than a laugh, "Indeed I was. And if it had been who had found you, I wouldn't have wasted any of my time putting that symbol on your cheek." He stopped and caressed her cheek with the mark on it, "I would have taken you just as I would any other female and like them, you would be writhing against me in sheer bliss."

Irene took a step back, knocking his hand away, "My brother was lucky," He said darkly, "He found you first and he had the right idea to mark you as his own. He knew I wanted you." He closed the space between them and now Irene was up against a tree, "I would have gotten you too." His mandibles twitched and he smirked, "Be careful, little ooman, if he dies, I have every right to take you as my own." He touched her markings once more and then was gone, leaving Irene alone by herself once again.

"Holy mother that guy is creepy," She mumbled to herself as she tried to find her way back the temple once again.

Finally, she managed to stumble her way into a temple but this wasn't her temple. This was a giant black stone edifice with torches sticking out every few steps. Irene wondered about it for a few more moments and then slowly began climbing. At the very top, there was a different feel than at the temple of Paya. This was much more sinister and there was something rather familiar about the statue of the Yaut'ja who held a spear and was draped in a stone black robe. His eyes bored into Irene's and she shivered involuntary. She looked around and saw very few Yaut'ja here, only a few here and there, watching her with interested eyes.

She looked at them with the same and then stepped into the temple. Gifts of food and drink had been left at his feet and she noticed that the pillars had been carved to show scenes of death and rebirth. She realized with horror that this was Centanu's temple, a place where the Yaut'ja believed she was born from.

Feeling sick and waves upon waves on nausea, she ran out of the temple, back down the stairs and back down the stairs as fast as her legs could carry her.

When she finally reached the bottom, she let her gut empty from all food she had eaten earlier and then curled up in a little outcropping of trees, crying and shivering. She wanted to be back in the forest with her Kiko, laughing and smiling and hunting. She didn't want to be here, about to become the bride of some damned monster!

Finally, after shaking and crying, she stood back up, wiped her eyes and walked back out onto the main street, finally finding her way back to the temple.

The female Yaut'ja scowled at her but Irene just ignored them and sat down in a little corner, wishing she had a book or music or something.

Then the elderly Yaut'ja said something and all the females made noises like groaning and whining. She stood up to and came to rest by the elder's side.

"What's going on?" She asked softly and the elder's mandibles turned up into a smile.

"They are practicing their dance. And they have just learned that you will be the main part of it, my little warrior. Your possessions have been returned to you and you may wear them whenever you like." She held out her things, including her spears and trophies. Irene smiled and then looked up at the elder, who was beaming down at her. "I believe that you only killed out of self-defense, which is something I know most of the females here do not believe. You are not a pet, you a warrior, something that they can never be."

Irene slipped her things back over her head and relished at the familiarity they all carried.

Then the music started and Irene was shown where to stand.

The females spoke of these trophies as they ate their final meal of the day. Most of them were staying in the big room with the hammocks, but some were leaving and finally taking the final step in their journey of passion and love. To finally become a worthy mate of the son or daughter of the Queen, the two would have to come to the Temple of Paya and mate in one of the chambers off the side of the main temple. Then, they would perform a ritual the morning after and they would be free to live their lives as partners. Of course, THEY wouldn't have told the ooman, even if she had asked. Instead, they gossiped about her, musing on how she had killed the Jungle Hunters.

Irene watched as every once in a while, a glance was thrown her way. The females sat on the floors with their plates in their hands. She had eaten earlier in the main temple with the elder Yaut'ja whom she had dubbed as Auntie. Auntie didn't mind this nickname and it was easier that telling the girl her real name. While she ate, she learned more about the culture of the Yaut'ja and the separate tribes.

Now, she sat with her trophies, feeling strangely empty without her Kiko with her. She sighed and then looked at the knife which she had taken back from Hero. She looked at her reflection and sighed. He HAD saved her that first time and had given her the knife…

She slammed it down and sighed. How could someone go from one end of her spectrum to the other in such a short time? Oh yeah…

By killing her monkey.

She laughed bitterly and her finger caressed one of the curved mandibles that hung from her belt. For a split second, she wished that it was Hero's mandible hanging from her belt instead of this random Yaut'ja. At least then she wouldn't be here.

But then her mind wandered back to what the creepy Yaut'ja told her. If Hero hadn't found her, she might be having his kid in a few months. That made her shudder slightly and she picked up wrist computer to study the language again. It had only been a day but she found being engulfed in the language was helping her beyond belief. She cocked her head and suddenly, the female who had ridiculed her earlier was in front of her.

"Ooman," She said in a thickly accented voice, "Your trophies…I want to hear about them. Those are not all Yaut'ja, are they?"

"Uh, no, some of them are animal bones. Most of their furs went to keeping me warm." She explained and even though the female was the only one who was talking to her, she could feel the ears of the others turned towards her.

"Alright," She said, leaning back in her hammock, "I'll start from the beginning of my adventures. The Game Planet was somewhere I never wanted to be…"

* * *

Hero trotted through the sodden foliage of the game planet with his cloaking device on. He really needed to get some of his stressors out and he thought a good hunt could do that nicely. Suddenly, he heard something crying a few feet ahead of him. It sounded like a baby animal but he could have been mistaken. His trot broken into a run and suddenly, he saw what had been making the noise. A group of oomans was standing in a circle around a baby ctreuka crying miserably at the body of its fallen mother. The group was all armed and very cruel. Every few seconds a foot would snake out and kick the baby. The poor thing didn't even have fangs yet.

Hero knew he could attack since they had weapons and that's exactly what he did. The first two women met their makers at the ends of his wrist blades. He watched with some sort of sick, twisted satisfaction as they writhed and spasmed, blood gushing out of their mouths and their twisted hands trying to pull the triggers of their guns.

Paya, oomans were sad.

The other men had stopped bothering the baby and had started shooting at Hero who was ready for their attacks. He flung the women's bodies to the ground and pulled out his spear which went promptly through his big mouth and pinned him to the tree, his blood painting the bark like a canvas.

Hero then reached for his knife and then realized he had none. The damned ooman had taken it!

_'Pauk!'_ He swore in his head as a bullet grazed the side of his arm. He roared in anger, and the other two began to advance, bullets still flying. He quickly ducked behind a tree and finally he heard them stop shooting.

"The bastard must have gotten scared away," One of the oomans said shakily, "Can we save them, Rich?"

The man looked down at his friends and felt one of the woman's pulses, "They're gone Cecilia. That damned thing got them."

"Well he's gone now so I guess…URK!" Her sentence had been halted by the entry of a pair of wrist blades into her chest cavity.

"HOLY SHIT!" The man exclaimed and began firing again. But this time, Hero was ready. He dropped the dead woman and then sprung up behind the man, decapitating him in one fell swoop of the already bloody wrist blades.

Silence cascaded over the forest again and Hero retracted his wrist blades. His body was covered with ooman blood but it just added to the thrill of the hunt. For one second, he wished that it was his ooman's blood that covered him instead of the blood of strangers. But then again…He would have never fallen for her as hard as he did…

The baby ctreuka was still crying for its mother but now it crawled over to him, mewing pitifully. As it crawled over to Hero, he had to use all his will power not to turn tail and run the other way. The creature cried again and Hero picked it up. Its golden blood came out several cuts and its purple fur was matted with mud and ooman blood.

He then had a brilliant idea. He would bring this baby back for his ooman and she would smile again instead of cry. The baby had crawled up onto his shoulder and clung to him like he would with his mother.

Hero nodded, obviously satisfied and then turned and walked back in the general direction of his ship.

* * *

Irene was NOT looking forward to this day. It had been two weeks since she had seen him. She had been told he had been out hunting, which made her even madder. Now, she would have to see the damned hunter again after two weeks of getting into her new routine.

There he was, making his cooing noise that was so irresistible to her. Why was that? Was she picked out especially for that sound? She sulked over to her and he said something. She just glared at him and he let out a growl, finally grabbing her hand and running down the steps and towards the field where they had practiced the day before. He activated the barrier that separated the street from the jungle and had her sit down in the middle of it. She did so reluctantly and then he took her hands in his own and covered her eyes.

"Okay, this isn't funny anymore," She said grumpily, "I mean, it was sort of cute when you took me here but…OH MY GOSH!"

Hero had been looking for that reaction. Her mouth was in a perfect O and she was touching the furry creature with her delicate fingers. He looked up at her with his big golden eyes and he gave a little shriek of happiness. She smiled down at him and then began to coo in baby talk.

"Oh hello there cutie pie! You're so stinking cute I could eat chu all up!" She cooed and the ctreuka cooed back. Then she noticed something, "He has no fangs. Did you have to get him defanged before you bring him here?"

Hero shook his head sheepishly and then she reached over touched his shoulder gently, "Thank you, so much." She was crying now and so he reached over and gently wiped her tears away. She brought her hand up and clasped it to his and closed her eyes, relishing at his touch. He suddenly leaned over and brushed his mandibles over her face. She opened her eyes and they looked at each other for a few seconds before the baby started screeching again.

Irene jerked back as if she had been in a trance and cleared her throat. "Thank you, anyways," The two of them sat in an awkward silence for a few moments before Irene spoke again, "You know, I don't even think I got your name."

Hero thought about it for a moment and then spoke in his language, _"Nukj'ri…"_ He said and she repeated it slowly, hacking up a few syllables here and there. Then suddenly, he spoke again, _"Ahhh-reeeen."_ He said slowly and she laughed in spite of herself.

"That's right, Irene," She smiled and he smiled back. For the first time since her arrival, she wondered if being the bride of a monster wasn't half bad.

* * *

A few hundred yards away, Bo'stais watched his youngest brother give his present to the ooman and had watched them engage in some bizarre ritual that had to do with the mouth. She had almost pressed her fleshy mouth into the confines of Nukj'ri's mandibles. He also saw the gift. It was a ctreuka, like the one the ooman had had before. It was only a baby but Bo'stais had personally made sure that the thing had gotten defanged. Now people would fear her even more.

Then again, he had begun to hear snippets of her story from the females in the temple of Paya, repeated to others that they passed. The most amazing part of the whole story was the fact that she and his brother had brought down a Super Predator in the jungle. That's how he had started out. Even Bo'stais knew that if an ooman helped a Yaut'ja, they were allowed to keep them alive as long as they continued to help them. If it had been him instead of his brother, he would have killed the ooman then killed the Super Predator.

He swore angrily as they stood up and the ooman wrapped her arms around Nukj'ri's neck in an embrace. He did the same with so much enthusiasm; he lifted her up off her feet, the baby ctreuka screeching loudly all the while.

Bo'stais made a vow that it would be the first thing he would kill when she became his mate.

* * *

**Who wishes they their own ctreuka? I know I do and I bet you can't guess what I'd name it? :D **

**Anyway, love reviews and I love story alerts! The more reviews I get, the faster the updates will come!\**

**LOVE,**

***~Hannah~***

**The song at the beginning is called Disgusting by Ke$ha. There will be more of the song in the next few chapters.**


	12. Tonight Tonight

**Guess what time it is? **  
**UPDATE TIME! :D :D :D :D **

**That's right my lovely readers, I have another update for you that I think you'll like quite a bit. (Lots of thrills, chills,but no spills) I have been LOVING every one of you because I just hit my 3,000th hit on this story this month! (And it's not even the 15th!) I'm trying to get these done as fast as I can because I'm leaving in...*looks at the calender* Ten days. So, for all those who have been enjoying these very quick, very special updates, PLEASE keep reviewing so they can keep coming because I really am enjoying writing these, like, beyond anything I've ever written. **

**You guys are my inspiration and I just want you to know each one of you has a very special place in my heart and on my computer because you're reading and reviewing or getting alerts or adding it to your favorites. And so, I say THANK YOU to each one of you! **  
**Now, LET'S GET ONTO THE STORY!**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!**

* * *

_Kiss me,_  
_K-k-kiss me,_  
_Infect me with your love and _  
_Fill me with your poison. _  
_Take me, _  
_T-t-take me, _  
_Wanna be a victim,_  
_Ready for abduction..._

* * *

Irene named the ctreuka Kantra or "prayer" and wasn't surprised to see the terrified expressions on the female's faces when she brought him into the temple. Auntie was the first to say something in English but it was even harder to understand her because she her mandibles were splayed in disgust.

"What is that…THING doing here?" She demanded as Kantra crawled up her shoulder and perched there.

"Well…I told you how I had Kiko passed from stupid HERO killing him? Well…he just earned points in my book." Kantra let out a purring noise and nuzzled against Irene's face. "He just got points in my book."

The females were still hissing and she heard murmurings about Centanu and the creature she now possessed. "He's been defanged, I've been assured."

That didn't help the other females sleep that night as the creature curled up next to Irene like a suckling with its mother. They spoke into the night, deciding what to do about the ooman. They had tolerated her for two, almost three weeks and now…and now she brought this thing into the temple!

**_"We should slit her throat while she's sleeping,"_** One said quietly, glancing back at the sleeping ooman. A few murmured in agreement but the eldest one, the only one who could speak English, hissed at them, silencing them all in a split second.

**_"She has been through more than all of you put together."_** She scolded.

**_"She's killed your brothers and mine, Ple'oni, you cannot deny that,"_** Another one pointed out, **_"That is a crime worthy of death right there."_**

**_"And yet Nukj'ri saw something in her that he obviously didn't see in any of his own kind. I don't understand why we cannot accept that she is a warrior. You heard her story!"_**

**_"You can also not deny that she's a murderer,"_** The same one said angrily, **_"And the fact that she is an ooman has everything to do with it as well."_**

**_"I think that it's sweet,"_** A younger one mused, her eyes glazed over with petty thoughts, **_"Something that one could kill so easily falling in love with something that could kill her."_**

**_"It's not sweet,"_** The one who suggested slitting Irene's throat snapped angrily,**_ "It's disgusting and wrong. He should be courting his own kind. Leave oomans where they belong, on the shelf of a male's chamber."_**

**_"Leave her be,"_** The second eldest one glared at the one who had just spoken, **_"Ple'oni has made her point. Even if she IS an ooman, she has earned her place even if it is hunting our kind. Paya only knows how many oomans have died at the hands of the Yaut'ja. She has every right to hunt our kind."_**

**_"Yes but…"_**

**_"But nothing. She has been marked as the mate of Nukj'ri and we should honor that. She has been chosen just like the rest of us as a daughter of Paya, making her our sister. Honor her and treat her like you would treat any other female here."_**

Most of the females nodded their agreement but those, like the one who had suggested slitting her throat, just glared at the two eldest Yaut'ja.

**_"But what are we going to do with her ctreuka?"_** The younger one asked, standing up from the floor, **_"We can't just let it run around, nipping at our ankles, can we?"_**

**_"We have been assured that it has been defanged and it will grow to know the ooman and us."_** Ple'oni said, also standing up, **_"And I will believe her. She hasn't tried to kill us yet and so I will trust her. If she truly wanted to kill us, she would have already done so."_**

* * *

****Several more weeks went by and Irene grew much more accustomed to the everyday life that the Yaut'ja culture had thrown her into. Every morning started with bathing and shaving everything. The eldest female, Ple'oni, as she had found out, had begun to grow friendlier towards her as did a few more of the females. Others began to ridicule her even worse than they did in the first four weeks of her capture.

Next would be breakfast, usually a strange meat or fruit and Irene had to be assured on more than one occasion that it wasn't human she was eating. After that, the other females usually cleaned the temple, but Irene was sent to Auntie to study the Yaut'jan language, which she was still having a hard time grasping. She had learned a few phrases and a few verb conjugations but other than that…

Next came the dance. Irene found that what she lacked in language she made up in her skill as a dancer. Two years of fighting and hunting had made her fast and agile, the perfect combination for a dancer. She had tried dancing when she was little, maybe about twelve or thirteen but found that puberty had hit her hard in the back of the head and she could barely walk straight let alone dance.

Finally, came her time with Hero, which she was finally beginning to enjoy. Most of the time, they sparred but sometimes, he would take her places and she found herself falling for his charm and his spontaneous nature. There was still a ridiculously large barrier between them what with their language differences, but every time he surprised her, she found that didn't matter anymore.

She felt like a cliché, a Beauty and the Beast scenario set in a high tech universe set to a really scripted soundtrack. Paya, how she wanted to break away from that stupid 'boy meets girl, boy is too dangerous, girl falls for boy' Twilight scheme. It was bad enough when Stephanie Meyer did it but when it applied to her own life…

Then again, she was pretty sure that Stephanie Meyer had no idea that the formula would work between a rouge human and an alien about one and a half times her size.

And then there was Bo'stais.

He would try and advance on Irene when she was away from Hero but usually, she would stay away from him and stay close to Ple'oni or Auntie who would keep her safe until Bo'stais would snarl and leave.

"Why does he want me?" She asked one night as Ple'oni undid her dreads for the first time in two years. Auntie had explained that usually, it was a special ceremony usually for the Unblooded to get their hair painfully done but Irene was no normal Unblooded suckling. She was a warrior and a damn good one too. Ple'oni had done this twice before but like most Yaut'ja, knew how to do it from when she had gotten her own hair braided.

"Because he is a jealous creature," She explained as she brushed out Irene's now tangled hair with her fingers. It was extremely long but extremely damaged and she was worried about putting it back in dreads in fear that she would end up breaking it all off on accident, "He wants what he cannot have and in this case, it's you. It's not you exactly he wants; it's the idea of you. Then, when he gets you, he will drop you like a hot potato. I should know. He was once my mate but he found his solace in another young female who was the mate of an older brother. When the affair had been found out, he denied the affair, lost me and the female became a caste, a servant. His elder brother took me instead and we have been together ever since."

Ple'oni leaned back and her mandibles curved up into something that resembled a smile, "He wants to become life-partners and I think I'm ready."

"That's really cool," Irene said, smiling back at her mentor. Ple'oni was the friendliest to her next to one of the younger females that Irene dubbed as Joy because she always seemed so happy. They couldn't talk to each other but their body language spoke for everything.

"You and Nukj'ri have seemed to have been getting along better these days," Ple'oni said slyly and Irene sat up, a faint flush painting her cheeks.

Irene looked back down at Kantra, who sat on her lap, sleeping soundly. She rubbed one of his velvety ears and smiled slightly. She then looked back up at Ple'oni who was looking back.

"I don't know…I guess so. I mean, there's still that part of me that wants to strangle him every time I see him and then there's that little piece of me that wants to run up to him and kiss him a million times over!"

"What's a…kiss?" The word seemed to give Ple'oni some trouble and Irene blushed harder.

"A kiss is when two individuals put their lips together. It's an intimate moment for both parties but in the case of my first kiss…" She shivered and then her mind wandered back to that fateful night where she had lost her virginity to the boy she thought she loved. And she thought he had loved her back. He had taken advantage of her and she hated herself for that.

Thinking about this made her think of Luke and that made her stomach curl in knots. She was beyond lucky she hadn't gotten pregnant and she was now happy that Luke was killed. She sighed and Ple'oni spoke again.

"What's wrong?"

Irene closed her eyes and let a few tears slip out from below lowered lashes. She needed to get it out of her system, get the monkey off her back, so to speak and so she took a deep breath.

"When I was in the jungle, the night that I was captured, one of the men in my group took me forcefully. I should have fought harder but I didn't. I let him take me like a bitch in heat." More tears were falling from her eyes now. "I was an idiot."

Ple'oni was silent for a moment, "You could have fought him off but you didn't. I think, deep down inside you, that's what you wanted. To feel that special connection with someone even if it was through sexual advances that you weren't prepared for."

Irene turned down her head in shame but then Ple'oni made a growling noise and Irene's head snapped back up to look into her friend's yellow eyes. "That doesn't mean that he was in the right. He had no right to take you like that. If he was a Yaut'ja, he could have been put to death for such activities." She put her clawed hand on Irene's shoulder and her mandibles were set in a little half smile. "You will be alright though, you'll see," She said squeezed her shoulder gently, causing Irene's trophies to clack together like a musical symphony.

When the dreads were all out and Irene was left with a large ball of hair about as large as her fist, she tied it back into a bun and crawled into her hammock. That night, she watched the moon move across its trek in the sky and watched the stars, so different from those at home, twinkle and sparkle brightly. Thoughts bounced around her head like a ctreuka on sugar and she smiled as she thought of her family and friends back on earth. Would they ever believe her if she got back? Would she even tell them? She was pretty sure her chances of getting home were zero to nil but whatever. They probably wouldn't get her now anyway.

She figured that she had been gone for about two years, give or take a few months. Her sister would be graduating from high school and she wondered if Mike had gotten married to his high school sweetheart yet.

A warm breeze sent stay hairs flying and suddenly, little monkey paws were on her back and now Kantra was sitting on her head, watching a fluorescent bug that resembled a glowing butterfly. With a sudden movement, the insect was gone and Irene realized what had happened five seconds too late.

She made a face as she heard a crunchy noise and suddenly, she heard a noise from down below on the steps. A Yaut'ja was standing on the stairs looking up at her and it didn't take her long to figure out who it was. A smile crept over her face and she quietly got out of her hammock with Kantra who had moved from her head to cling to her arm.

Hero was waiting for her in the moonlight and Irene smiled and gasped something out for running down the stairs had taken a lot of her gusto. He cocked his head and looked behind her back. She looked around too but didn't see anything. Then she realized he was looking at her hair.

"I had to take it out," She explained softly, "They were getting old and gross. Ple'oni said she might have to cut my hair and allow it to grow out again before she puts them back in."

Hero was silent for a few moments and then he took her hand, a simple but sweet gesture and began pulling her along. She looked back at the temple and looked up at her window. A lone figure was standing there, watching her go and smiling at her.

Irene's little midnight outing would be safe.

The two of them walked down the silent streets towards the field where they sparred so often. Homes were quiet as was the jungle that surrounded them on both sides. Finally, Hero undid the latch and they walked in.

"Are we sparring?" Irene asked but then Hero sat down on the grass, motioning for her to sit down next to him. Hesitating, she did so and he leaned back, resting his head in his arms to look back at the sky. Irene did the same thing and Kantra squealed in protest but then found a comfortable spot on Irene's stomach.

None of them spoke for a few moments until Irene shivered and Hero caught it. He let out a soft cooing noise and pulled Irene closer to him, earning him an indignant HEY from the owner of the foot he had just grabbed. He pulled her onto his warm chest and she made a face at him in protest but found herself looking into the eyes of her Hunter, blushing slightly. He looked right back at her, never blinking.

She wondered if he could feel her heartbeat as well as she could feel his. Neither of them moved for a few seconds but just allowed the night breeze to carry them away to oblivion. Irene's hand slowly moved from where it was resting on his chest towards his face, tracing his lower left mandible with her fingers. Hero let out a noise between a hiss and a groan and he closed his eyes in rapture. She leaned down towards his mouth and his mandibles caressed her face and neck, earning him a moan of appreciation from Irene. His arm moved across her back, pinning her there and suddenly, her mouth was on his teeth, a strange but yet arousing action.

Irene couldn't believe that she was kissing him and from his head positions she could tell that he was kissing her back. She wrapped both her arms around his neck and deepened the kiss, loving the way that his mandibles toyed with her now loose hair. No boy she had ever kissed had made her feel like this. She felt tingly, excited and nervous, like she was kissing an electrical outlet. Her nerves were on fire but the good thing was that she didn't feet the chill of the night anymore. His arm tightened around her waist and she whimpered and suddenly, his tongue was in her mouth, long and slender, quickly dominating Irene's and wrapping around it easily. She shivered and she slowly pulled back catching her breath before kissing him with as much fire and passion again.

Nukj'ri had never experienced such an arousing moment. Usually females stayed as far away from the mouth area as possible but this ministration was so amazing…

His claws traced down her backbone softly and she whimpered once more, and Nukj'ri almost cried out himself. This ooman was almost too much. All his senses were on overload and every sound she emitted sent him closer to the edge.

Suddenly, she pulled away and she looked at him under lowered lashes. He noticed that she absolutely glowed in the moonlight, as if she was Paya herself. She wasn't blushing but that's what made her so beautiful. She wasn't ashamed of what she had just done and that just made him want her more. Paya, if she wanted, he would take her back up to the temple at that very moment and claim her as her own right there and then.

"Hero?" Came her strong voice and he looked at her. She was smiling softly and she leaned up on her forearms to look at him better, "If you ever do that again, I might explode in a ball of fire."

He chuckled at her comment as she laid her head back down on his chest, closing her eyes and allowing the beating of his heart to lull her to sleep like a lullaby.

* * *

**WHAT AN UPDATE, RIGHT?**

**I have nothing more to say besides I don't own the song. That song belongs to Katy Perry and it happens to be one of my favorites on the radio right now. (I always have to sit in the car until it ends and my parent's always complain I'm wasting gas lol.) **

**Love, **  
**Hannah**

**P.S. Cute little button below needs so LUVIN' and each reviewer gets their own baby ctreuka. :)**

**_*Words like this are Yaut'jan*_  
**


	13. Dirty Dealings

**Hello hello all my avid readers of ole! This is the first of two very quick updates that will probably each be coming out this evening (if I don't get lazy and decide to stay on Deviantart the whole night! XD) **  
**This little Author's note is more of a plea than anything. I am starting a "Monster I Have Become" playlist and each song that is added will come for you LOVELY readers. When you review, just add a little note at the end of your review what song it should be whether it be a couple song, a fight song, a theme song, or a song that just seems to fit the story. Starting next chapter, I will be putting a little note at the end that's the playlist that's being added too all the time!**  
**So, please leave me a song along with your amazing review! **  
**YOU GUYS ROCK! :D**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!  
**

* * *

_Monster._  
_ How should I feel?_  
_ Creatures lie here._  
_ Looking through the windows.  
_

* * *

Bo'stais was not one to give up.

When he had heard of this little midnight romp, he knew it was time to act. There was no way that his inferior little brother was going to keep the ooman all to himself. Actually, Bo'stais would probably just have her shipped back to the Game Planet after knocking her up. She could give birth to the bastard suckling and then probably die from shock and blood loss.

He loved to think of the possibilities that he could have with her. She was small, yes, but nonetheless a fighter. Much more than most of the females that he had encountered. She would put up a fight in any situation she didn't like and that's what made him so interested. She looked like any other ooman that he would see on the Game Planet except she was lankier and her hair had been in dreads. But that morning, when he saw her dancing in the temple, it had been wild and free and her garb had been that of the traditional Yaut'jan priestesses.

She honestly thought she was Paya's _c'jit_, didn't she?

The dance grew quicker with each passing drum beat and the females sped up their dancing, performing all their moves in synch. He only had eyes for the ooman who was turning red under the strain of such moves that were so easy for the other females. Finally, the song ended in a burst of instruments and a howl of joyous noises was heard from the females. His ooman smiled and spoke a few words in their language to a few of them. Paya, her accent was the worst he had ever heard! She then stopped in front of Nukj'ri and the two embraced. Not like passionate lovers, he noted, but more of best friends. The ooman pulled back and she laughed slightly, her pink tinge giving away her feelings towards his brother.

Her ctreuka playfully toyed with one of Nukj'ri's dreadlocks and both of them were laughing and smiling. He then held out his hand and she took it, still smiling and they raced down the temple stairs. The other Yaut'ja in the temple watched them go, some in happiness, others in disgust. Bo'stais ignored some of the other females, definitely Ple'oni and his elder brother and followed them out of the temple and down the road.

He watched them spar again and he watched the ctreuka try and defend its master as her last one supposedly did. She was an okay fighter, nothing to get excited about, but then again, his brother seemed to be going easy on her. He snorted darkly, scaring two pups who wailed and ran in the opposite direction.

The ooman seemed to be losing and Nukj'ri closed in. She winced slightly but then parried his spear and then the real fighting began.

She still wasn't as good as, per say, himself or some of his brothers but she was still good, for an ooman, of course. His brother began to kick it into gear, blocking her and feigning several times to the left and right. She was ready for him, grunting and gasping audibly. His brother, a trained silent hunter to the end, didn't emit a sound and fought her as strongly as she did. Suddenly, he missed his footing and the ooman struck with fangs. She whipped around and struck his hand as hard as she could with the sharpest end of her spear and Nukj'ri's own flew out of his hand and she held it at his throat.

Ah dear little ooman…She didn't know his brother…

Suddenly, he dodged the spear and dropped down onto his hands into a squatting position, knocking her legs out from underneath her. She went sprawling and he came up and moved like lightning, grabbing his spear and as he did this, she rolled to her feet and clenched her spear so tightly her knuckles turned white. She narrowed her eyes and then all Hell broke loose.

They fought like demons. Bo'stais was amazed that the ooman could move so fast. One moment she was striking, or attempting to strike and the next, she was blocking Nukj'ri's attacks. Suddenly, both held their spears at the other's throat and everything stopped. Both froze, eyes locked on the other, daring the other one to drop their weapon first.

Then his brother dropped his weapon and the ooman followed. They stared at each other for a few more moments, panting slightly, watching the other's move.

Then suddenly, a grin broke out over her face and she began laughing. Nukj'ri began laughing too, a strange noise but nonetheless enthralled. She looked up at him and her laughing ceased and her smile turned to one of caring and her eyes were full of something that Bo'stais had ever seen before from the ooman. She took a step closer to him and suddenly, he realized with horror that the ooman was falling in love with his brother!

She placed one hand on his cheek and then one on her chest, a sign of unwavering feelings for the other. He had only seen this between a few times before, usually between his brothers and their mates but once between a pair who had nothing to do with the royal family. Her mate had been 'accidentally' killed by a misfire and she had been presented his spear which she promptly killed herself with it.

Now Nukj'ri was making the same sign and the ooman blushed and smiled at him. Bo'stais now knew there was only one way to get this ooman into his clutches. He turned on his heel and began to walk up to the hangar that would take him to the Queen's palace. Several of his friends greeted him as he walked but he ignored them, taking care to think out his plan so there were no flaws. Only twice had something like this occurred. He would fight his brother to the death for his ooman.

He found himself standing before the Queen much sooner than he expected. She watched him with her keen eyes as he approached her.

"My Queen," He said and she nodded towards him to continue, "I look to fight my brother, Nukj'ri, for the mating rights of the ooman known as Cheveyo in a fight to the death."

The queen looked like she might explode, "I thought I had raised you better than that, Bo'stais!" She snapped and then he held up his hands in a sign of defeat. The queen let out a noise of agitation and leaned back in her throat, "The ooman is here on a flaw and now you wish to steal her away? I always thought you were one of the wisest of my sons."

"I do wish to destroy her," He explained, "I will take her before leaving her on the game planet to become easy prey for those who hunt on the Game Planet. Either that or she will die from shock and blood loss when she goes into labor."

The Queen leaned forward and narrowed her eyes, "That is the Unforgivable Law, Bo'stais. You may not harm a female if she is nursing or pregnant. You know this as well as I do. They will kill you if they knew what you were planning."

Bo'stais just laughed and then sneered, "I would not be harming her, my Queen, just putting her back where she belongs. She would be perfectly safe until the child stopped nursing."

She arced a brow ridge and glared at her son, "You are a fool, Bo'stais, even worse than your brother Nukj'ri." She thought for a moment then spoke again.

The Queen looked at him like he was crazy but then her look of shock turned back into her look of regality. "Alright, if you truly think that this is the only way of getting rid of her…so be it. But, if you get her pregnant and then any harm comes to her before she is returned, I'll have your head."

"No harm shall come to her, I promise you that." He bowed deeply and then held out his arm, awaiting the mark that would allow him to declare a fight against his brother.

She made a mark on his forearm and they spoke a for a few more moments about his plans of disposing of the ooman. The Queen then spoke in hushed voices to a few of the Ancients. They weren't against the ooman being in the culture but like most of the Yaut'ja, they felt she should have suffered some form of punishment. They wouldn't have minded to see her shipped back off where she belonged whether it be earth or the Game Planet.

Bo'stais walked out of the throne room, very pleased with himself. He would deliver the mark to his younger brother that night. He stepped into the ship and let out a roar of triumph. Cheveyo would be his.

* * *

Irene took a deep breath and closed her eyes, "Alright, just do it!"

A light whispering was heard and Irene felt a tickling sensation on her back. Then a cold wind inched up her exposed neck. She opened her eyes and turned around to see most of her dark red hair on the temple floor. She let out a pitiful moan and then looked back at Auntie.

"It's so…SHORT!" She exclaimed and Auntie just watched her expression.

"It needed to be short," Auntie put down the small razor she was holding and looked at her, "You still look beautiful."

Irene looked down at the ground and sighed, "I miss my dreadlocks though," She said sadly, "I wish I still had them in."

"They needed to come out," Ple'oni said, stepping out of the bathing room. "She needs to get ready for the dance, Onio'so," Ple'oni held out a neatly folded stack of clothes in a deep blue color along with an array of interestingly shaped jewelry. The other females had already donned their own outfits in varying shades of green and blue. Irene quickly stepped out of her normal brown skirt and risqué top and slid on the skirt that was similar to a loincloth with designs in black ink decorating the fabric. The top bared one shoulder for all the world to see while another was covered with a thick strap that hung down her back in a tassel. Her feet were bare excluding the anklets that she wore and the thick leather straps she wrapped around her thighs.

Her neck was quickly adorned with simple necklaces and Ple'oni marked her with some different symbols on her arms, chest and face.

"You are ready for the dance," She exclaimed once Irene had opened her eyes once again. She didn't even recognize herself. It had been at least two years since she had gotten a full glimpse of herself in a mirror. She wore a rosy flush to match the braided necklaces and her anklets. Her face was covered in different symbols made out of something that felt like paint. She felt, finally, like a warrior.

"I look…" She began but then stopped herself, "You're right, we should be going."

The two hurried down the stairs where a ship was waiting to take them to where the dance would take place. This was the dance to initiate the new Unblooded who had just become Young Bloods and to allow the younger females to get a good look at potential mating partners for the future. Some would probably even claim their mates that night for all the females took part in the first dance. Then only the temple females would perform for two other dances. If they were seen even trying to acknowledge a Young Blood, they could be exiled on the spot.

"Stay with me, Little Warrior," Ple'oni said and Irene watched the trees get smaller and the mountains grow closer.

"Why is the dance in the mountains?" Irene asked quietly and Ple'oni leaned down to speak to her. Paya, she was tall.

"The dance happens on a sacred spot in the mountains every year. It is where Paya first danced for Centanu and together they created life. Life and death, the cycle of the universe."

"Interesting," Irene mused as they flew higher. She was thankful for the thing lodged into her throat because she knew that the air was getting thinner the higher they went. Finally, a deep glow emitted from a draw in the mountains and there, a giant bonfire was ablaze with hundreds of Yaut'ja below. The other females wore colors of black and gold and their jewelry was much more exquisite. The ship landed in another clearing about a hundred yards away and they all began to trek through the jungle.

"Will our males be there?" Irene asked and Ple'oni nodded.

"They have to come to keep the Young Bloods in line. They can get very reckless at times. Even if they know the rules, every time there is at least one Young Blood who tries to woo a Claimed female." She explained as they came into the clearing. Irene looked around and saw the Young Bloods were standing in clumps, watching the females in black with keen eyes. Baby Yaut'jas played farther back in the shadows and the oldest looking Yaut'ja she had ever seen stood, watching the newly arrived females with growing interest. They especially watched Irene who saw through them almost immediately. She glared back and heard a shrill noise. The dance was about to start.

Irene took her place and the woods became deathly quiet except for the crackle of branches behind her. The music began and they began to dance wildly. Each move stretched her to the limit of her ability but that's what made Irene love it. She loved being pushed and every time she did it, she knew that she would get even better.

The music swelled and she stopped as Ple'oni began her solo. She was just as if not more graceful than dancers on earth. She was just as flexible and fast and as her solo ended, Irene decided that she was a hundred times better than any dancer that she had ever seen.

The dance finally ended and Irene closed her eyes in relish. She loved the feeling of the flexibility of her limbs and the heat of her own body. She let her pose down and watched as the females mingled amongst the Young Blooded. The females from the temple moved over to a group of Yaut'jan males that wore much nicer armor and were a bit larger. Irene smiled when she saw Hero and ran over to him. His mandibles tangled in her short hair and he let out a roar of protest.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," She apologized as he touched her face with his mandibles. "My hair was too damaged."

He let out a soft coo and his mandibles wrapped around her throat. Something tickled in the hollow of her throat and she moaned, angling her neck so he could reach other places. His tongue hit a sensitive spot and she let out a gasp involuntarily. His mandibles unwrapped around her neck and he grinned at her. He was pleased to see she was blushing and it had nothing to do with her exhaustion.

She crossed her arms over her chest, creating a delicious bit of cleavage and cocked a hip, pretending to be mad.

"Did I say you could make me melt into a puddle of warm goo?" She asked and then her face broke out into a wide smile before she stood up on tiptoes, wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him fiercely. They stood there for a few moments in an embrace before someone cleared their throat and they pulled away from each other to see Bo'stais towering over them.

Hero let out a nasty hiss and let Irene's hips go. She glared at the nasty creature and he smirked back.

The two had a heated conversation for a few seconds in their native tongue before Bo'stais managed to persuade Hero to follow him into the trees, farther away from the bonfire. He gave Irene one last fleeting look and they disappeared into the trees.

Irene looked at Ple'oni who walked over to her with her mate who glared at Irene but didn't say anything.

"What's going on, Ple'oni?" She asked quietly and Ple'oni looked at where they had disappeared to.

"I do not know, Little Warrior," She responded in a worried voice. She hated to think about what Bo'stais could and would do to Nukj'ri and as they stood in silence, Nukj'ri came out of the woods, looking as if he had been attacked or he had just been sentenced to his death. Fluorescent green blood oozed from a pair of marks on his forearm and Ple'oni looked at him and then at Irene.

"Hero," Irene said, looking at him and rushing to his side, "Hero my darling, what's happened to you? If Bo'stais did this to you I swear to Paya I will…"

He interrupted her by pulling her into a bone crushing hug and tangling his mandibles into her hair.

Ple'oni spoke but she sounded grave. "Nukj'ri has been challenged to a battle. The winner of the battle gets you as a mate as their prize. The loser receives _u'sl-kwe_..."

* * *

**_u'sl-kwe-Death_**

**_C'jit-Shit_**

**That chapter MADE me want to punch Bo'stais in the face and then piss on his soul. AND I'M THE WRITER HERE! **  
**Maybe that means there's something wrong with me? :) **

**Anyway, read and if you like what you've read, review AND PUT A SONG FOR THE PLAYLIST DOWN! :)**

**Love, **  
***~Hannah~***

**P.S. Thanks to all my new and old reviewers! You guys make my world go round and round and make my email full of happiness! :)**


	14. Final Stands

**Phew! *Wipes sweat off brow* This is the longest chapter I've done yet! I want to send out my biggest condolences to Mr. Khalthar who saved my BUTT BIG TIME with the last chapter with the large pickle I was in. So, thank you a zillion times over, you saved my skin once again and helped me to stay somewhat close in the cultural ballpark. But yeah, so I just wanted to say thanks to all my beautiful reviewers, those who have been reviewing every chapter, you guys make my world go round and round and round and etc.**

**I am starting a "Monster I Have Become" playlist and each song that is added will come for you LOVELY readers. When you review, just add a little note at the end of your review what song it should be whether it be a couple song, a fight song, a theme song, or a song that just seems to fit the story. Starting next chapter, I will be putting a little note at the end that's the playlist that's being added too all the time!**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!**

* * *

Irene clung to Hero like her ctreuka clung to her back to the temple. When they finally were climbing up the steps, Irene turned to Hero and he could see the tears in her eyes, threatening to spill over.

"How can he do this?" She demanded, her voice wavering, "He is the most evil, most vile creature I have ever…"

Now the tears were falling and Irene's voice faded out when Hero's large hand cupped the side of her head, wiping the tears away with his thumb. Irene leaned into his hand closed her eyes, placing her own on his. "I don't want to lose you." She whispered and opened her eyes to look at him. Most people would turn away in disgust, but she relished at the sight of him. He watched her every move, observing every line and every blemish of her face.

To him, she was beautiful.

Suddenly, she was in his arms and she was crying. "I can't lose you," She sobbed into his chest and he felt her body heat warm him all the way to his toes. With his Warrior as the prize, there was no way he could lose. Then she said something that rocked him to his very core and for that moment, the world was a very different place.

"I love you, Nukj'ri."

Ple'oni awoke before any of the other females. She then donned her own armor, something that she only used a few times before. She finally added the final touch and then looked around the room, her eyes landing on the sleeping figure of her Warrior. In the past few weeks, Cheveyo had become more or less a sister to the female and she wanted…no…NEEDED to protect her.

Her ctreuka was curled up with her, his little paw on her swollen cheek. She had spent half the night crying her eyes out and now, she wasn't even allowed to see Nukj'ri. Ple'oni had always found the younger Yaut'ja to be a strange creature but an amazing hunter and braver that all of his brothers combined. (Except for her mate, of course)

She began to walk down the stairs and then ran out of the temple before anyone could stop her. The way down into the main part of the Clan's homes was marked clearly by the softly glowing lights that illuminated the path ahead of her. The southern sky was beginning to turn pink and gold as Ple'oni found the home of Bo'stais and a few of his brothers. Silently, she slipped into the home and turned on her cloaking device.

Nobody was up yet and the lumps of male Yaut'jas stirred only slightly as she passed them, only a breath of wind to show she was there. Then she saw Bo'stais' helmet hung up above his hammock and she reached for it, her clawed hands closing around the cold metal.

She had gotten it.

She then pressed a compartment on the side of the helmet and a small card, flatter than a sheet of paper, slid silently out and she pulled it out, replacing it with an extra she had gotten from Cheveyo's helmet. The helmet was hung back up and Ple'oni was out of the home and onto the streets within a minute. She let out a relieved sigh when she reached the street. Ple'oni only took a minute to examine the card but she had a feeling that what she needed would be here. She plugged the card into her own helmet and then began walking swiftly towards the hangar, hoping she could catch a ship to the Council.

The sun was just rising as she left the ground behind her and took the air to reach the Council's building. She watched the trees whip by her feet and she smirked behind her mask. She was going to find out what Bo'stais was up to, no matter what.

She jumped from the ships holding dock and then nodded at the pilot who nodded back and flew away. The building was larger than most of the other edifices in the Clan's boundaries but it also held some of the most important males of their Clan. She took a deep breath and then allowed the guards to open the door for her. She nodded her thanks and then her mate met her in the hall. He nodded to her and then spoke.

**_"The Ancients are willing to see you but say that whatever they find, they cannot kill Bo'stais over."_** He told her in his deep voice and then made a face, **_"Of course, I guess that also depends on what they find…"_**

**_"I'm not sure what they will find,"_** She hissed, **_"But I want to save Cheveyo and I know you want to save Nukj'ri. Just stay with me and don't leave my side."_**

The two waited in in the hall until someone called them over. Ple'oni looked up and then looked at her mate who nodded to her and the two of them strode into the Ancient's Chamber.

About twenty or so old males sat in high backed chairs, watching Ple'oni and her mate enter the chamber. Finally, the one at the head spoke.

**_"Welcome, Mos'itom, son of our Reigning Queen and Ple'oni, daughter of the Hunter Hlaystah."_** He spoke in a low, drawling voice and then nodded for the youngest Ancient to take Ple'oni's helmet. She took it off and handed it to him.

**_"I am not sure what we are going to find,"_** She said truthfully, **_"But I know he's up to something."_**

**_"You speak of the fight that will happen between him and the Yaut'ja known as Nukj'ri?"_** He asked her and she nodded, her dreads flipping this way and that as she did so. **_"Very well. Take the card out of the helmet and let us see what we can find."_**

They did so and a large screen illuminated the far eastern wall. A bright first person shot was observed by all of the Queen's throne room.

_"My Queen," The person wearing the helmet spoke and the Queen watched her son with scrutiny, "I look to fight my brother, Nukj'ri, for the mating rights of the ooman known as Cheveyo in a fight to the death."_

_The queen looked like she might explode, "I thought I had raised you better than that, Bo'stais!" She snapped and then he held up his hands in a sign of defeat. The queen let out a noise of agitation and leaned back in her throat, "The ooman is here on a flaw and now you wish to steal her away? I always thought you were one of the wisest of my sons."_

_"I do wish to destroy her," He spoke again and now the Queen looked as if she had calmed down slightly, "I will take her before leaving her on the game planet to become easy prey for those who hunt on the Game Planet. Either that or she will die from shock and blood loss when she goes into labor."_

_The Queen leaned forward and narrowed her eyes, "That is the Unforgivable Law, Bo'stais. You may not harm a female if she is nursing or pregnant. You know this as well as I do. They will kill you if they knew what you were planning."_

_Bo'stais just laughed , his jeers echoing through the throne room,"I would not be harming her, my Queen, just putting her back where she belongs. She would be perfectly safe until the child stopped nursing."_

_She arced a brow ridge and glared at her son, "You are a fool, Bo'stais, even worse than your brother Nukj'ri." She thought for a moment then spoke again._

_The Queen looked at him like he was crazy but then her look of shock turned back into her look of regality. "Alright, if you truly think that this is the only way of getting rid of her…so be it. But, if you get her pregnant and then any harm comes to her before she is returned, I'll have your head."_

_"No harm shall come to her, I promise you that." He bowed deeply and then held out his arm, awaiting the mark that would allow him to declare a fight against his brother._

_Bright green seeped from his arm and then the screen went dark._

Ple'oni felt as if someone had stabbed her in the stomach. The bastard…How dare he try and do this to her Cheveyo!

The Ancients were looking at one another; each had a placid expression of anger on his face. **_"Ple'oni, can you bring the ooman here?"_** The oldest one asked, "We must discuss her future here…"

Ple'oni bowed and murmured something and then rushed out of the room with her mate at her heels. She doubled over as soon as the doors were closed and she started swearing under her breath. She couldn't believe how evil he could possibly be. Her mate put a hand on her back but she shrugged him off.

"If he is truly that evil…" She began and then closed her eyes behind her returned mask. She then stood and then began walking towards the door that led out of the Council's building. "I'll be back. Cheveyo…poor thing…"

* * *

Irene was numb. If the song had been playing right now, she felt the moment would have been perfect. She took a shaky breath and looked at the Ancients. They looked right back at her and she finally spoke.

"What do you want me to do?" She asked in a voice that echoed through the whole Chamber. "What can I do? I have to save Nukj'ri."

"You cannot stop," An Ancient began, "What has been put in motion. What you can do is choose what you want to do. We have gathered evidence of the Queen and her son plotting to put possibly a pregnant female in harm's way. This is an unbreakable law that says that the Yaut'ja cannot harm a pregnant or nursing female of any species. Now, we must ask you," He began, "If Bo'stais wins this and kills his brother, you may allow him to live free while the Queen is taken off her throne or Bo'stais will die and his mother will be exiled."

"What about me?" She demanded, "What will happen if he DOES win and I decide to kill him?"

"We will take you in," Ple'oni spoke, putting a hand on Irene's shoulder, "You will live with us as my sister and my daughter."

"And what will happen if the queen is exiled or killed?" Irene asked looking at the Ancients once again. "Won't everything fall?"

The Ancients looked at each other and then and Ple'oni. "Young Ple'oni is the mate of the eldest child of the Queen. She will become the next queen and your life will be safe in her hands for we have given her permission to keep you safe for as long as you shall live."

Irene looked at the Ancients and then at Ple'oni. Then finally, she took a deep breath in through her nose and she closed her eyes.

"If Bo'stais wins, I want you to reveal what he has done and have him killed. Have his mother exiled," She spoke slowly and she felt no regret from saying these words. But, the possibility that Hero would die was in her mind. She tried not to think about the possibility of him dying.

The Ancients nodded and then looked at Ple'oni, "Keep the ooman safe. Things are going to get very interesting before the fight. Nukj'ri already came to the Council last night and requested the fight to be in three days' time." He looked back to Irene, "You will not be able to see him or you risk your execution."

Irene nodded slowly, sadly and then looked back up at the screen. She couldn't believe the giant mess that she had caused for these creatures.

Those three days were the strangest that Irene had ever experienced. She didn't out of her hammock for the first two, only seeking solace from Kantra, Ple'oni and Auntie. The other females gave her small gifts to try and get her out of her hammock but usually she would just smile at them, thank them, and then dissolve back into silent tears. Sometimes, in the night, she would wake up and look out the giant window down at the stairs of the temple, wishing with all her heart that her Hunter would be there, waiting to take her away from this nightmare and take her as his mate forever and ever.

The moon gave her comfort during those warm nights and her Kantra would sometimes lay awake with her, gazing out at the stars and treetops. Sometimes she wished that she was still on the Game Planet, hunting her feelings out, but now all she could do was cry. Finally, on the third day, she walked into the bath house like a zombie and bathed herself. Or, sat in one of the stone pools and cried some more.

Finally, Auntie helped her out of the pool and she was dressed in a ceremonious black ensemble and her face was lined with symbols. She had no idea what they meant but as soon as she was dressed and her face was completed, Ple'oni, Auntie, and Kantra were herded into a ship and she was put onto a different one. There, in the ship, to her aching heart's dismay, was Bo'stais and Nukj'ri. She saw Nukj'ri and she almost began crying again, but he made the sign of attraction and she made it back, making his mandibles splay into a grin.

Both were behind force field looking things that separated them from Irene and she was placed behind another one. It jumped up with an electrical hum and Irene closed her eyes, trying to keep herself from crying.

Finally, after about five minutes, they landed at the base of a large building that overlooked the city. Yaut'ja young and old poured into the sides and Irene realized with horror that it was an arena and that's where they would fight.

Nukj'ri and Bo'stais were both taken first, their hands cuffed behind their backs and they were led away, leaving Irene watching the guards suspiciously. They undid her force field and allowed her to step down onto a plate of metal that hovered about a foot off the ground. Her feet were instantly trapped the moment that she stepped onto the plate and she let out a cry of dismay.

"What are you doing?" She demanded but they ignored her, letting one guard press a button making the plate start to move. She would have fallen over if her feet hadn't been stuck but as they entered the building via a back entrance, she realized that her feet were starting to get less and less stuck. Finally, they entered a larger room where the Ancients, Auntie, Ple'oni, and Kantra were. The plate dropped to the floor with a bone jarring THUMP and her feet became unstuck, allowing Irene to stumble off the plate and be caught in the arms of Auntie.

"There have already been some murmurings of foul play," The head Ancient said in a gravelly English dialect. "The Queen has been rumored to be putting in some unfair advantages for Bo'stais."

"Well can't we stop her?" Irene demanded and the Ancients looked at each other.

"They're nothing more than rumors, Cheveyo. And unfortunately, you must sit in a different part of the stadium as the rest of us." Auntie said grimly and Irene turned to her. "There is a special box up there for you, go on now. I'll keep Kantra safe."

Irene looked at her and then looked at Ple'oni who came over and gave Irene a big hug. "It will be alright, Little Warrior. Just stay brave. I know that Nukj'ri would not want you to shed liquids from your eyes for him."

Irene brushed back a few blooming tears and then an Ancient helped her into a cube-like room and then shut the glass door. As soon as she did this, it began to rise and now Irene could hear the roar that met her as she climbed higher.

The arena was HUGE and she could probably guess that some neighboring Yaut'jan Clans had come to see the show. When they saw Irene, each one roared in anger or in appreciation for the bloodlust that was about to be cured.

An announcer said something Irene didn't understand and then he pointed to her and uttered two words that she knew rather well.

**_"Lar'ja Sain'ja,"_** He said and the crowd went nuts. She wondered what else he was saying but she didn't want a translation. Her stomach was turning in knots and she was afraid that she might throw up or pass out or something. The sun above her was hot and her black ensemble only intensified the blaze. Then she saw her warrior come up at one end of the field.

The battle was beginning.

* * *

She heard the crowd going bananas at one end as Nukj'ri faced his brother. He wore armor and his cloaking device and for weapons he possessed a knife, a spear, and wrist blades. Suddenly, the crowd went silent and a gong was heard, signaling the fight to begin.

They charged at each other, like two great beasts and they slammed into each other, both coming away with nasty cuts on their exposed skin. Bo'stais had to be at least a foot taller than Nukj'ri and this worked for and against him. He was taller, but that meant that he wasn't as fast as Nukj'ri, especially when Nukj'ri wore less armor.

Bo'stais came in for another attack, trying to jab his hunting knife into Nukj'ri's flesh but he was too quick, dodging and coming back up to feign his own attacks.

When they were sparring, Irene had always seen Nukj'ri's face rather intense but with his helmet on, fighting a Yaut'ja a foot taller than him, she could almost feel his intensity radiating through the box, competing with the sun for the prize of Irene's consciousness.

It was Nukj'ri's turn to play offense. But only one in every hundred got through and actually caused Bo'stais to roar out in pain and finally, Nukj'ri made a mistake. He stepped into his brother's path and this gave him the perfect opportunity to grasp the edge of Nukj'ri's helmet and with a roar, he ripped it off and flung it aside. For a split second, he was surprised, blinking sunlight out of his eyes but then he got back on his feet and back into the fight.

The battle was leaving Irene's nerves raw and all her senses were on edge. Each time Nukj'ri took a hit, she felt her heart break just a little more. She screamed when he was pushed down and barely had time to roll out of the way as Bo'stais' spear came down and struck the dirt where he had been lying. He jumped back onto his feet and both circled the other for a few moments until something broke between them and they lunged at each other again.

This time, the battle was brief and gruesome. Nukj'ri dodged underneath one of his swings but came back up too soon. Bo'stais was ready for him and with a glint of sunlight on his knife; he brought it down, severing one of Nukj'ri's mandibles completely.

Green blood gushed out of the wound as Irene and Nukj'ri roared in unison. It spattered the dusty ground like raindrops and suddenly, another blow was taken by Irene's proud warrior. The same blade was shoved into a chink of armor and Nukj'ri fell to his knees, clutching the wound that now bled freely.

"NOOOOOOOOO…" Irene screamed and pounded on the glass with her fists, "DAMMIT YOU BASTARD!" Her tears were falling hard and fast now and the tears blurred everything. Bo'stais leaning over Nukj'ri's body... Nukj'ri pulling the knife out of his side and slamming it into the only place he could reach. He jammed it with all his remaining into the chink between his helmet and neck guard and with two hands, allowed his brother's blood to seep down his hands and watched him spasm until he let go, too exhausted to continue watching the gore gush onto the ground. Finally, Bo'stais' body stopped twitching and it lay on the ground, still oozing green plasma.

Nukj'ri gave a little snort of satisfaction and then his head lulled back and his eyes closed.

"HEROOOOOOOOO!" Irene screamed and beat against the glass. A group of smaller Yaut'jan males rushed out to the fallen brothers. When they reached Bo'stais, they were shaking their heads, and the crowd was murmuring. Then one of them allowed a blue beam of horizontal light to stretch out before Nukj'ri and he was laid on top and they rushed him away.

"He's okay…" She whispered, tears of happiness replacing tears of agony as the Queen now spoke. Then a new voice filled Irene's ears and she realized it was one of the Ancients. The Queen was roaring in anger now, obviously trying to deny something but then there was pandemonium. Irene couldn't see what was going on but there was angry roaring and she heard Yaut'jan swear words being thrown around. The box where Irene was being held dropped about fifteen feet and it shattered around her, and she just barely had time to get her hands over her head before the thing shattered. The only thing that saved her from being punctured was that she landed on a body. That body was the Queen's.

She stood up shakily and she looked at one of the Ancients who was looking back at her with a horrified expression.

"Who caused the box to fall?" He demanded and they all looked at each other and then back at the Queen's body.

"The box fell by itself," Auntie murmured, "You all saw it, didn't you?"

She glared at the group, daring them to argue with her. Nobody did so. Irene laughed slightly and then realized that the world hadn't come crashing down on her. Her Hero was still alive, if just barely.

"Hero," She began, "Will he be…"

"They're still trying working on him," Ple'oni said and caught her as she fell. "Are you alright, you look like you might…"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Was the last thing Irene heard herself say as she passed out from sheer exhaustion and happiness. Her Hero had saved her again.

* * *

**HE SURVIVED! HE SURVIVED! (But he'll have to live with no bottom mandible for the rest of his life. :()  
But its okay because Bo'stais is dead. :)  
**

**I have nothing more to say other than, read, review and...Give me songs for my playlist? :D **

**Love,**  
***~Hannah~***


	15. The Edge

***Blushes* Whoo, we have SMUT IN THIS CHAPTER! :D :D :D :D **  
**I am NOT much of a lemon writer so please excuse my shizzy writing skills when it comes to that. **  
**So, anyway, the moment I know you've all been waiting for and I've been waiting to write! I imagined that the females would probably challenge their mates first before mating with them but I sort of reversed roles here but I thought it was cute so I put it in.**  
**SO...****  
**

**KEEP THOSE SONGS COMING IN PLEASE! :D :D :D **  
**Onto normal stuff...**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!  
*WARNING!* THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS A VERY LONG SEX SCENE! IF YOU FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE READING THIS, I SUGGEST YOU MOVE ON OR SKIP THE CHAPTER!**

* * *

Irene's eyelashes fluttered open to find several wires connecting her to a monitor where she could see her heartbeat and watched it get faster as several Yaut'ja came into the room, watching her intensely. She heard them speaking and nodding to each other and then finally, Auntie came forward.

"Little Warrior," She said softly and touched Irene's cheek. She winced and then she realized why. When the glass had shattered, she had been cut in more than one place, including her face. "We must talk…"

She shot up, ignoring the pain in her lower back, "Is it about Hero? Is he alright? Please Paya say he's alright!" She was beginning to hyperventilate as the monitor so proudly told her and Auntie laid a hand on Irene's head.

"He is alive and well, Cheveyo," Auntie chuckled, "He is as eager to see you as you are to see him. The healers believe that he will up in about seven days in your time and back in the hunt in one lunar cycle."

"That's…"

"Ninety of your days and unfortunately I know that he is speaking of asking for you to mate with him, you cannot until he is fully healed."

Irene blushed slightly. She knew she loved him and she knew she wanted to spend the rest of her life as his mate, but the idea of a prearranged night made her feel…weird. It was like arranging when a kid was supposed to lose a tooth or when someone was going to pass gas. It just wasn't natural.

"So…I know that Bo'stais was speaking of impregnating you before leaving you back on the Game Planet and so some of the scientists wanted to see if that was possible," Auntie continued on and then looked at one of the Yaut'ja who nodded for her to continue. "When you were passed out, we removed one of your eggs and took a male's sperm and we found out that indeed they can reproduce. You may carry Nukj'ri's children, if you so choose."

Irene was taken aback. She had always imagined having children but she wasn't sure if she would be a good enough mother. Now…she was less sure. She could Hero's children, if she so chose. She thought about it for a few more moments before looking up at Auntie.

"Can I go see him?" She asked and Auntie looked back at the scientist who nodded. She was sore all over but she managed to slip out of the cot without anyone's help and pad down the hall where the healer had pointed.

Finally, she found the room and her heart nearly soared when she saw Hero's form sleeping in his cot. She walked over to him and looked at his face. He had no only half of a bottom left mandible but she didn't care. He was safe and she had her Hero back. She was free to love him with all her strength.

Her fingers traced his face and as she touched him, she grew closer and closer until she was only a hair's breath away from his form. His eyes opened and he saw the face of his beautiful warrior staring back at him. She smiled and laughed airily. He smiled back and then his hand cupped her face as it hand so long ago and then they were acting as if they were long lost lovers.

Irene was kissing every inch of his face she could reach and Nukj'ri was leaning back in relish, grasping her waist and growling softly in appreciation. Somehow, she ended up straddling his waist, trying to stay away from his wound that had been tightly wrapped. Apparently the only thing that Bo'stais had done to up his advantages was his downfall. His knife had been dipped in poison that would have killed Nukj'ri if he had been stabbed anywhere else. When he had been stabbed in the neck, the poison had instantly killed Bo'stais.

Now her lips were on his and his hands were massaging her hips slowly and sensually. She moaned against his mouth and her own hands found his strong chest and she laid them there, her skilled hands moving in little circles, causing Hero to snarl possessively, clamping his hands tightly around her waist, causing her to fall forward slightly. She wondered if he could feel how hot she was getting through the thin underlining of the black dress she still wore.

Suddenly, she heard a noise and she whipped her head up to look at Hero's pained expression. He let out a stifled breath through his teeth and she blushed.

"Oh Paya…I am so sorry!" She said, realizing she had put her knee onto his stab wound and he hissed once more before she realized that the moment was over. She blushed even deeper and then crawled off of him. "Thank you for not dying," She murmured before kissing him once again and she turned to leave the room but not before he grabbed her and then wrapped his taloned fingers through her hair and kissed her and Irene knew that all had been forgiven. She broke the kiss and then stared into his eyes for a few moments, "You saved me again, my Hero."

He let out a soft cooing noise and then Irene smiled softly.

"I want to continue this," She said, "But not until you're fully recovered. I don't want you getting hurt anymore that you already are."

He looked at her with an arched brow ridge and then scoffed. She rolled her eyes and then looked back at him, "Okay, I know what you're thinking. There's a better chance of me getting hurt than you but still…" She raised her brows seductively and placed a finger to her lips, "I want you in top physical condition when our big night finally comes."

He looked at her for a split second and she was almost sure she saw a glint of lust cross his face. She smirked slightly and then turned on her heel and left the room, feeling very proud of herself indeed.

* * *

The next year came and left in a whirlwind. Ple'oni was announced as the new Queen of the Clan and she requested Irene became a Hunting member of the clan and she was welcomed as a member not with as much open arms as she might have liked, but the Queen seemed to like the ooman and she hadn't killed anyone else and her ctreuka was rather well behaved so they allowed her to become a hunting member, a female claiming a male title.

She became an honorary Warrior and then proceeded to attempt to learn the rest of the Yaut'jan language which she now pored over with the help of Nukj'ri and Auntie, she learned quickly without the threat of a crazy Yaut'ja who wanted her as his mate. There was also the mating between her and Hero hovering over her head as well. She was excited but scared at the same time. What if she didn't…perform, for the lack of a better word, as well as other females? How much different could Yaut'jan males be than human males? The school slut was obviously talked about and she wondered if they ever compared females. Irene wondered who the 'school slut' was here. Hopefully, she didn't run into her.

She would think about it for days on end and without Ple'oni in the temple anymore, she kept more to herself and run Kantra on the top of the head. She figured that she had to be around twenty and she wondered what her friends back on Earth were getting themselves into. Probably some of them had kids and others were probably in college, studying for their degrees in whatever their pretty little heads finally came up with.

"It is time for the dance," Someone said in Yaut'jan and Irene looked up to see one of the younger females speaking to her.

"Alright, I'll be down in a minute," She said and tied back her newly acquired dreadlocks. She then let Kantra climb down her arm and he squealed in protest. "I'll be back in a little while," She said, touching his head. She then moved down the stairs towards the giant statue of the goddess that towered over the figures that lined the sides of the temple. When Irene took her final step down the stairs, they all began to line up, waiting for her to start the dance. She also took her stance and then nodded to the group who played the instruments.

They nodded back and then began to play the tune that Irene knew so well. The dancers began to roar and Irene joined them as finally, an equal.

Nukj'ri was there when she was finished and she gave him kiss when he opened his arms out to her.

"I have to ask you a question," He said softly in his own language. Irene opened one eye and looked at him.

"Ask away," She murmured as he leaned in to kiss her again. He pulled away and her thumb brushed against what used to be his mandible.

"I want you," He purred and pulled her closer, "I want you and Paya forbid it because I am this close to taking you right now and claiming you as my mate right here and right now."

She leaned back and drank in his tall figure. If he truly wanted, he COULD take her right there and then. She had found herself wishing for him to take her ever since their encounter after he had barely escaped from the arena. Several times, she had come to close to pleasuring herself to the thought of Nukj'ri's naked form before her and doing unmentionable things with him. She wondered if he was better than her first time and realized he probably had children before, much to her amusement and distaste. Ple'oni had told her that many males had already been bedded by females before they chose their mates.

"That's not a question," She pointed out, "But, you could have me whenever you like me. I am ready…I think…"

He looked at her and arched a brow ridge, "You think?"

She blushed under his gaze as he let her go, "Well…I'm not sure I mean…I don't know how to explain it but I feel guilty…"

"About what, my Warrior?" he asked and she averted her eyes from his.

"Luke took what might have been yours." She admitted, blushing deeper. He looked at her and his face grew puzzled.

"You told me you had given yourself away before Luke." He said and she laughed slightly.

"I had," She confessed, "But Luke took my second time and I think I should have saved that for you."

He scoffed slightly and then lifted her chin up to look at him. Paya, she was absolutely beautiful, even with her scars and imperfections. She had the aura of a goddess and he could believe that she was the ooman goddess of beauty, Aphrodite.

"My _yeyinde_ should not be ashamed of her past," he spoke softly, his mandibles twitching gently, "She should look towards her future and not be afraid for she should know that her mate will be beside her every time she takes a step."

Irene looked up at her Yaut'ja and smiled slightly, "I do love it when you talk like that." She mused and then touched his forearm, sending little jolts of electricity through his body, "So...when do you want to make this happen?" Asked Irene, her voice suddenly getting much huskier and much more seductive. Nukj'ri was sure that he would lose it if she talked like that again.

He growled softly and wrapped his hands in her dreads, possessively and heatedly kissing her once again. He still didn't see the exact use of this but it felt…right…for some strange reason or another. She moaned against his mouth and then he released her. "If you're willing…I want to make you mine tonight."

She closed her eyes and they touched foreheads, his cool one against her sweaty one.

"I want to be yours tonight, my Hero."

Irene knew she was ready for what was about to happen. She had gone straight to Auntie who then took her into a chamber off of the main temple and had her pray to Paya for an hour straight for wisdom, guidance and fertility in her coming years. She then was taken up to the bathroom and the females began to pour sweet smelling oils into the bathwater and scrubbed her until her skin was red and sore. She then was shaved and then she had more oils applied the cooled her skin instantly.

Then she was dressed in a blue cloak looking thing and then she tried to eat dinner with the others but she was beyond nervous.

"You must eat," One said, placing a piece of fruit on her plate, "If you don't, how will you be able to perform tonight?"

"I don't want to talk about it right now," She mumbled but picked up the fruit and took a halfhearted bite.

"Come now Cheveyo," Another said, leaning into talk to her, "Aren't you looking forward to this? You and Nukj'ri will be bound together for life. When tonight is over, you then get to mark him as your own mate and you will never have to worry about females picking him to mate with."

"They better not be picking him to mate with," She glared at the piece of meat on the bone, picked it up and ripped it from the marrow that it had been attached to.

"They wouldn't have before," She continued, "Because they knew he belonged to the Warrior."

Irene looked back up at her and smiled softly, "Thanks," She said and then put her bone back down on her plate, "I'm going to finish getting ready and then I'm going to go. Next time you see me, I'll be Mrs. Nukj'ri."

Obviously the female had no idea what this meant because she just looked at Irene like she had grown two heads.

"Never mind," She muttered, stood up and then walked back up the stairs towards the upper room they all shared. Each step she took, it echoed in her mind that she was about to have sex with a creature that wasn't even her own SPECIES. Then she remembered that she was probably the first ever to hunt and then make love with another race.

She found her outfit she had worn her first time on the planet, the bunched up skirt with the top and nixed the leggings, showing off her sculpted legs from years of training and hunting. She then tied her hair back and then Kantra, who was looking at her, crawled up her arm and clung to her shoulder. He let out a soft purr of contentment but Irene quickly dislodged him and smiled sadly.

"Sorry buddy, what I'm doing tonight would give your cute little monkey head nightmares," She told him and he wailed in protest.

For the rest of the time before she had to go and meet Hero, she sat on her bunk, trying desperately to keep what food she had eaten down. She still couldn't believe this was happening. Had she felt this nervous her first time having sex or was it just the creature she was having with making her nervous?

Finally, some of the females came into the room and nodded to her.

"He's waiting for you," One said and she stood up and took a shaky breath.

"Okay, I'm ready," She said and on quivering legs, she followed them down the stairs, through the main part of the temple and down a hallway lined with doors made out of some unknown material. Finally, they stopped at the last one in the hall and then they looked at her.

"May Paya bless you in your mating and in your eons to come," She whispered and they all bowed deeply towards Irene who stood there with a stupid look on her face.

"Er…Thanks…" She mumbled blushing and they left the corridor. After standing there for several minutes, Irene finally opened the door and stepped into the room.

She was greeted with a deep rumbling sound and as her eyes adjusted to the dimness of the room, her heart almost stopped. There Nukj'ri was, waiting for her, watching her with his keen orange, almost golden eyes. She took another step into the room and subconsciously tucked a dreadlock behind her ear. Her stomach was in knots and her palms were sweaty and she was afraid that he could sense her uncertainty. They circled each other for a few moments, taking the other in and Irene found her eyes glued on his, daring him to make the first move.

She watched him and watched his body. He was far more muscular than human men and with only a loincloth, she could fully appreciate the physique of a true Hunter.

"Do you fear me now, Cheveyo?" He asked boldly with a roar. They watched each other for a few more seconds before he spoke again, "I could crush you now; kill you in one fell swoop, even without my weapons."

It took Irene a few seconds to realize what he was doing. He was challenging her, making sure she was a mate worthy of him to take, a strong female to pass down his genes. She sized him up and then responded with her own banter.

"I fear you," She responded in a voice just as clear and steady, "I fear you because I know what you say is true. But I do not cower from you. I come to you willing, even though I know you could take my life if you wanted to."

He gave her a look that was strange to Irene, "You are wise, Cheveyo, wiser than most of your kind. You realize danger but you are willing to take it on. That is the warrior in you that I love."

She was drawn to him like the compass of an arrow to the North. She now knew, in her heart that this was so right. She knew that they're banter was far from over but she was ready for whatever he could dish out now.

She met him in the middle of the room and he towered over her by a good two feet and she stared up into his face, her own as unchanging and still as a stone.

"Am I everything you wanted?" She asked her voice now in a distant whisper. She wondered if he could hear her hammering heartbeat.

He met her and now they were only a hair's breath away from each other. "No," He whispered, his mandibles twitching ever so slightly, "You're even more I could ever hope for."

The distance between them closed and then she was gasping for air and he was kissing her with so much passion, he had lifted her off the ground and she wrapped her legs around his waist. His hands dug into her hips, his thumbs moving in little circles, creating gasps from the delicious creature in his arms. She pressed into him and through the heated passion; he realized that only a thin piece of fabric separated his naked flesh from hers.

Irene's fingers ran over his toned chest, marveling on how smooth and soft it was before dipping her head lower and started to caress her heated lips down his thick neck. His grip tightened on her hips and he let out a hiss before lowering her to the ground and ridding her of the cloth that bound her breasts closely to her body.

She gasped when the cool air hit her nipples and her back arched slightly, moaning as Nukj'ri's hands brushed over the pale pink center, making them go erect. His mandibles splayed in satisfaction and he began to perform his own ministrations on her neck, biting and sucking gently before his mouth reached her left breast and knowing that it was a rather sensitive part of a female's anatomy, chose to place his hands on them and started kneading them gently, getting a howl out of the female below him.

He also knew he had to be gentle. She wasn't like a female Yaut'ja who would quickly dominate a male, she was fragile and he knew that if he wasn't careful he could break something, make her bleed or worse…he could accidently kill her.

One of her hands dipped from his neck to tug at the loincloth he wore. He laughed darkly and then snarled softly. He wasn't willing to let go of that yet. She moaned in protest but when his hand drifted down her taut stomach to her own bottom covers, that protest turned into heated passion.

Nukj'ri brushed aside her coverings and could already feel the wet heat from between her thighs pulsing through her body. She whimpered softly as his hand brushed her lips, coming in contact with a slightly swollen nub. When he did this, her whole body arched and she gave out a little scream and he knew that he had hit something good. Slowly, he began to move farther down, taking care to not hurt her with his claws and he slowly slid it into her wet opening.

Irene was in total bliss and she bucked against his hand and Nukj'ri let out a little growl of his own as the heel of his hand moved against her clit. Her juices poured out over his hand as she began to scream in bliss. His finger pumped in and out of her faster and faster until her walls convulsed around his finger and she literally saw red as she fell off her climax.

In the heat of the moment, she had noticed that her skirt had come off and so she looked at Nukj'ri and then gave him a shaky smile, trying to keep some of her dignity.

"Okay, appetizer, but now I feel a little underdressed," She tugged on his loincloth and with a playful growl, he pulled it off, exposing his extremely large erection to Irene whose eyes went ridiculously wide. He gave a chuckled and she looked at it and then at him. "Are we sure that's gonna fit in me? No matter, that's not what I have planned." She leaned forward and before he could stop her, she had her tiny little fist around his thick, pulsing manhood and began to move it up and down. She did it slowly at first, getting several grunts and groans from her mate, but then she began to move faster.

Nukj'ri thought he might explode. He had never been pleasured in this way and every time she got faster, he thought he might erupt right there and then. His seed coated her hand and he gave off little guttural roars, his mandibles splayed in a fiery hunger that could only be satisfied by Cheveyo's touch.

She moaned and moved her hand faster, her face was coated in sweat and her thighs were clenching, trying to stave the heat that was gathering there again. Suddenly, Nukj'ri let out a deafening roar as he too climaxed and Irene's whole front was covered in his silvery seed. She blinked several times and then slowly brought her hand up to her lips and licked a bit of the thick liquid off of her fingertips, slowly, sensually swirling her tongue over each digit, almost instantly bringing Nukj'ri back up to his previous state.

He grabbed her and pinned her to the fur covered floor of the chamber and he watched her breast rise and fall with each breath. He could hear her heartbeat, sense every change from her.

He knew her. That's why he had saved her that day so long ago in the forest of the Game Planet. It was because she was special and even then, he could sense it. She had a fire in her that couldn't be stifled. It was a fire of spirit, a flame that kindled her need to survive. It was the flame that each person who was brought to the Game Planet had, but only some of them truly tapped into the monster that it made them. She had given into the beast and she had survived. She was the animal that was the spirit of the Planet and living with the Yaut'ja, she had become almost tame and gentle.

It was time to let the monster inside of her out.

He looked at her and she scrutinized his every move. Finally, she smirked.

"What are you waiting for? The next century?" She asked in a shaky voice. "I want you, Nukj'ri. I want all of you right now. And so you're gonna give me all of you and that includes your children so get moving, I don't have all night."

He smirked down at her and slowly began to penetrate, her walls convulsing and writhing around his massive girth. Her fingernails dugs into his tough hide, drawing green blood and she gasped in pleasure and pain. Luke had only been a twig compared to the whole damn trunk of the tree. He watched her expressions, waiting for her to get comfortable with his size before continuing. Finally, she opened her eyes and a flicker of a smile crossed her lips.

"Let's do this, babe."

He moved slowly at first, paying attention to each little noise she made and her body language. What he saw was a mixed bag, sometimes she would seem to be in pain and sometimes, overwhelming pleasure and Paya, she was TIGHT. He tried to keep himself in control but he was losing that battle rather quickly as lust took over and he began to move faster, wrapping Cheveyo's legs around his waist, allowing him to penetrate deeper and now her cries of pain turned into moans and screams of pleasure and every thrust, every movement of their dance brought them closer to the edge of glory.

Irene's vision was tinted red and she thought she could hear herself screaming in pure ecstasy but she wasn't even sure anymore. Her nails dug into Nukj'ri's shoulders and she could hear him roaring every time he slammed into her cervix. She felt herself climbing higher and higher, reaching the moon and the stars, past the satellites and the atmosphere. She locked her legs tighter around Nukj'ri and he hissed in response, and he began to pick up speed, burying his length to the hilt with each thrust.

Irene was the first to lose it. She let out a deafening scream, yanked on Nukj'ri's dreads, mashed her lips against his teeth and rode out her orgasm. Then Nukj'ri lost all his sanity and he let out a deafening roar as Irene's muscles milked every bit of his seed, some of it rolling back down out of her and down his length.

He slowly pulled out of her and then pulled her up onto his chest, purring and tangling his mandibles in her dreads. She was now his mate and his alone and nobody would ever take her from him ever again.

Irene looked up at her mate and gave him a boneless smile. He let out a little growl and tightened his grip around her waist.

"So…" She slurred, "We…uh…official now?"

He chuckled softly and then looked back into the eyes of his mate and she instantly knew the answer to that.

* * *

**So...We all know that Irene can have Hero's babies...so the question is names! **

**Leave name ideas with your review and I'll pick the top one! **

_**AND MUSIC! LEAVE ME MUSIC IDEAS!**_

**Thanks for reading! **  
***~HANNAH~***

**_Playlist  
__"Something in Your Mouth"-_Nickelback (Mating song)  
_"Look After You"_-The Fray (Couple song)  
P.S.-You can still add songs to categories that already have songs in them. :)_  
_**


	16. Your Love Shines the Way

**Okay, don't hate me for not updating for a few days because you guys are going to have to get used to the not as frequent updates. I got to the place I wanted to stop but unfortunately, this chapter isn't as long as I wanted it to be. This one is more of a final chapter of the first part of the series and it will be a three or four part series but I'm thinking three and a half. XD **

**So...to all those of you who care, I'm off the day after tomorrow and so this is my last update for the next seven weeks. :( *Hears a giant AWWWW from the crowd* **  
**BUT...hopefully, I can continue working on my stories and hopefully, I can write down this awesomeness that comes to me and then pass it onto you guys. **  
**Anyway, please excuse the total OOCness of my Predator on this one. There will be much more bloodshed and sadness in the next part of it. And so here comes my question for you Yahoos. Should I continue on with this story or start a whole new sequel? The choice is yours, my friends. :)**

**And so, I bid my final farewell to all my beautiful readers until I return. I love you all. Don't forget to review if you haven't! Leave me something amazing for when I get back! :D **  
**I LOVE YOU ALL!**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!**

* * *

Irene woke to the sound of a drum in her ear or…the equivalent of a drum because Nukj'ri's heartbeat was so loud. He was watching her every move and his mandibles flared out slightly as she sat up. A soft fur covered their naked forms and she blushed. He was so warm and she could feel his heartbeat radiating through her splayed hand.

"You are beautiful when you are sleeping," He rumbled and she tucked a strand of hair behind her head. "But you make a strange noise from your mouth when you are in deep slumber."

"It's called snoring," She giggled and he arched a brow ridge and then she slid off of him, fur and all. "So…now what happens?"

He grabbed another fur and draped it over his lap and let a laugh reverberate in his throat. "We go to the Ancients and Queen and we get bonded."

"Bonded," She mused softly, liking how the word sat on her tongue. They weren't getting married, they were getting bonded, a concept that Irene liked a lot more than marriage. She had never really been into the whole, white dress, walk down the aisle, 'congrats, you're husband and wife' sort of thing.

She touched his face and then a smile graced her lips. "Just as long as I get to spend the rest of my life with you." His mandibles broke into a smile and then he wrapped his fingers through her hair and gave a little purr. She kissed him again but knew if they continued, things would go the same way they had that night. "I really want to continue this but I seriously am beyond sore right now." She winced as she tried to stand up and Nukj'ri was already up, helping her stand. She leaned on him and Nukj'ri found her clothing, strewn in various spots around the room and his own loincloth. They redressed in a comfortable silence and then faced each other, so different yet so the same. Nukj'ri reached over and tugged on Irene's hair, the same way that he had done it when they had first met and she blushed slightly.

Nukj'ri opened the door and she hobbled out, feeling as if she had just had sex with…well…a Yaut'ja. She knew she would be bruised and sore for weeks on end but she knew that she had her mate and that was all that mattered.

"So do we go and see Ple'oni now?" She asked as they walked into the main part of the temple. The dance was just getting over and many of the Predators turned away as they walked through the crowd, modestly turning their eyes away from the scandalously clad couple. Irene got a lot of mandibles turned up in mischievous grins as they passed from the females and a few males thumped Nukj'ri on the back and a loud clicking filled the room. The congratulations from the others in the couple's joining. She had seen this when Ple'oni had finally mated with Mos'itom and other females had come out into the light of the Clan's society.

"I must go back to my home and prepare myself for our joining," He said softly and brought her hands up to his mandibles, tracing each digit lightly, causing Irene to close her eyes in rapture. "I will be back for you as the sun sets."

"I'll hold you to your word," She said softly and then pulled away. He growled softly but then walked out the door, leaving Irene alone, grinning like a loon with several females watching her every move. She then realized the state of her dress and she looked around and the females laughed darkly before she hurried up to the upper part of the temple and changed into her everyday clothing that was far more modest. She then ran over and scooped up Kantra who had been sleeping in a patch of sunlight. She kissed his warm fur and laughed into it, smiling at the thought of her and Nukj'ri finally being together officially.

* * *

Irene took a step up to Nukj'ri who watched her with his yellow-orange eyes. She looked up at him and smiled and his mandibles turned up in his own grin. He held out his hand and she took it, feeling like a princess about to wed her Prince Charming, even if her Prince Charming was two feet taller than her and had four mandibles instead of lips.

Eh, minor details.

They approached the Queen's throne where Ple'oni sat in her robes of green and black, hiding her swollen belly from her own pregnancy. She stood and nodded to them and they both bowed deeply. She laughed and looked at them both in turn.

She spoke in her beautiful yet powerful voice, "It is amazing what Paya will do for young lovers," She said, her eyes first looking at Nukj'ri and then at Irene, "She will take one across time and space and will bring her to meet her true love while the other rises victorious from a fight that should have killed him. Yet here you both stand, your love shines through all differences and through all odds, you found each other."

Irene tore her gaze away from Ple'oni and turned to look at her mate and in his eyes; she saw something she had never seen before, even in their night together. It was pure and unbridled love and she knew that something had finally clicked between them that hadn't been there before. She had no idea what it was but just realizing that they had been through so much together did something for her. Standing here with him felt so…right.

"You have been told what to do, correct?" Ple'oni asked and Irene snapped her gaze back to the queen.

"Uh…Y-yes, Auntie ran through everything with me. I am ready." She declared and Ple'oni gave her a little half smile. She then turned to Nukj'ri and began saying something that Irene only partially understood and she was having him repeat it back to her, but he was looking at Irene as he said it, making her blush under his gaze.

As soon as he had finished speaking, Ple'oni turned to Irene and began speaking in English, a language that Irene hadn't spoken in several months. The words felt thick and clumsy on her tongue but Ple'oni spoke it as if she had been speaking it a moment ago.

"Repeat after me," She said and began, "I give myself to you, body, mind and soul."

"I give myself to you, body, mind and soul…"

"And I give you my everlasting love and the strength I have to follow you to the ends of the universe and when the dark closes in on our journey, I will be your light and guide your steps."

She repeated his, watching Nukj'ri the whole time, their eyes never leaving the other.

"When _dhi'ki-de_ falls upon you, I will still, forever, be your _Yeyinde_ and together, we can face anything."

She said the last line and then was handed a knife covered with feathers and beads. She hated to think what came next but she inhaled a lungful of the bitter air and stepped up to her mate who bent down so she could graze the side of his face. He didn't even wince as the cold steel touched his face and as she drew the symbols that were identical on her own cheek.

She then took it away and then grasped the sharp end of the knife with her left hand. Irene winced as she closed her hand around it tighter and tighter, and then slipped it from her hand, allowing the metal to slice into her calloused skin. She opened her hand and watched as the red pearls of her blood slipped down her wrist. She handed the blade to Nukj'ri who did the same thing with his own hand and held it up for her to press her own against his. Red mingled with fluorescent green as they clasped their hands together. Ple'oni then wrapped a strap of cloth around their enclosed hands. She then took their other hands and joined them.

"Through the eyes of Paya, I declare these lovers joined as mates."

* * *

Three months passed and Irene saw herself getting larger and larger each day. She was definitely pregnant but she had no idea how long she would be pregnant for. She had asked Nukj'ri, who told her constantly not to worry and she would be due when she would be due. They had set up a little nursery for the baby in one of the rooms where Nukj'ri kept his extensive trophy collection. Irene was creeped out but all the heads and gore but she decided she should allow to have him some fun.

He went out hunting several days after their joining but Irene didn't mind. She would go up and visit with Auntie or just walking around, watching the locals go about their days. They seemed to tolerate her better but maybe that was because she had been with them for over a year, almost two. She would wander through the open markets and try different foods. She wondered if all pregnant women were this hungry.

And each week there were trips to the hospital to check on the baby. It was a little fighter and had probably bruised her from the inside out by now. She didn't want to know its gender but found out that it had four tiny little mandibles protruding from its jaw, much to Irene's interest.

When Nukj'ri returned, he found his mate on the floor crying her knew that her ooman hormones were wacked. She sobbed into his armor for a few minutes before he could finally coax out of her what had happened. Between gasping sobs, he found out that she had been startled by Kantra who had jumped from a light fixture in the house. The ctreuka had run away and now she was upset because she had scared him away.

Nukj'ri wondered how much longer he could take of this.

Fortunately, he didn't have to wait long because in the next four months, he was awakened by Irene gasping and shaking him.

"My water just broke!" She exclaimed and Nukj'ri, who didn't know what that meant, rolled back over on his side and fell back to sleep. She shook him again and he growled at her, earning him a rather hard slap across the face. "I am going to give birth to your child at any moment and if you don't get me to somewhere where I can get painkillers in about five seconds, your dreadlocks will be coming out of your hair and you will have one pissed off mate."

Nukj'ri glared at her but found it better to do what his Cheveyo said because of her hormonal imbalance. She smelled like any other pregnant animal and unfortunately, if she started using him as a punching bag, there wasn't much he could really do. So, with his mate in tow, they ran out the door and then to the nearest ship port where Irene had started to hyperventilate.

"Calm down, Cheveyo," He told her, "Take deep breaths."

"Easy…for…you…to…say…" She gasped between breaths as the ship rose off the ground and towards the hospital building somewhere higher up in the hills. Yaut'jan healers raced around, trying to help her stagger towards the rooms. A stretcher came out and they hauled her onto it, trying to keep her from thrashing and yelling more swear words as now she was screaming _"Pauk" _at the top of her lungs, receiving glares from other occupants.

"Wait here," One of the healers said to Nukj'ri who nodded and then touched his marking on his left palm. He had been through Hell and back with this ooman and if she didn't make it out alive…Well…He didn't want to think about it. There was always that chance though.

That night was a long one. Healers would come by every so often, sometimes walking, sometimes running but all of them seemed to be going in and out of Irene's room. He could hear her screaming every so often as a contraction hit and it was hard for him not to run into the room and hold her as she rode out this pain.

His chemicals were different than most Yaut'jan males. Most would have been out hunting or even impregnating other females as his child was being born. However, he was the son of the late queen. He had been born of his father and mother and he was the full brother of his own brothers and sisters. They had all been born to have one mate and that was final. His sisters were actually no different than most females since they did live in a matriarchal society. They could sleep with and have the children of how many males they wanted.

Suddenly, a healer came up to him and shook his head. Nukj'ri's stomach dropped to the floor.

"Is she…"

"She made it but just barely. We had to cut the pups out and she wouldn't stop bleeding. She's sleeping now but would you like to see your pups?"

"My…pups?"

"Yes, she had two, a male and female, they have traits of both our species but the female tends to lean over more to our race while the male, even though he is bigger, is more ooman." He nodded to a Healer who had just stepped out of the room and he nodded back, "Come along. They are all sleeping now but you may see them."

Nukj'ri stood up on shaky legs and followed the Healer into the room. There, in the gentle light, lay his beautiful mate, her face pallor and still and her eyes closed. Her stomach was wrapped and she now had a bit more of a womanly curve to her body that wasn't there before that her pups had given her.

"She told me you would name them," He said and glanced down at one of the pups. This one was swaddled in a thick white cloth but her arm was poking out and he could see her gold and black speckled skin and her taloned tipped fingers. Her eyes were smaller than a normal ooman and she had four small mandibles, each one ending at a blunt tip that covered thin little pink lips. Her hair was also jet black and was the consistency of his own.

He couldn't see the boy's skin but he seemed almost normal except for the green tinge on his skin and much less prominent mandibles that actually ended in a point. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and Nukj'ri felt something he had never felt before. He felt the overwhelming need to protect these sucklings, guard them with his life because they were a part of him. He had only seen them for thirty seconds yet they had attached themselves to his soul like parasites. The boy gave a little yawn and blinked his golden eyes. He already had a full head of hair and he had the same colored spots as his sister running across the bridge of his nose like freckles.

"The boy is Akecheta and the girl is Lai'sha." He said with conviction and they wrote that down on a pad of energy. "They are my children. They are my pups and I am their _nrak'ytara."_

* * *

___nrak'ytara_-guardian

_dhi'ki-de_-death

_Pauk-_F**k

_Yeyinde_-Brave One  
Thanks to everyone who gave me suggestions for names! :D

**_PLAYLIST  
"Something in Your Mouth"-_Nickelback (Mating song)  
_"Look After You"_-The Fray (Couple song)  
"_Chasing Cars"-_Snow Patrol (Couple song)  
_"Kamikaze"-_Owl City (Irene's Theme Song)  
SONGS ARE STILL OPEN! :D  
**


	17. Homecoming

**Hello hello hello all my faboo readers! :D :D I hope the summer is treating you well and I hope that you have been counting the days until the next update of The Monster I've Become because I've needed quite a bit of time to get back into it! :)  
Anywhoo, I decided to leave you yahoos with the beginning of the second part, NOT the second book, the SECOND part where there will be three parts. (The Awakening, The Hunter, The Monster)**** And then there will be another two books after that about her daughter and her daughter's children.  
Anyway, this part of the story is far shorter than the first part, only five or six parts, but hey, that's okay because after that, the next part's only about five or six parts so we're winding down, folks! (Tear, tear)  
Anyway, enough stalling! Let's get on with the story! :D**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!**

**5.) This part does contain a rather graphic rape scene. There will be warnings on it but BE WARNED! **

**6.) Keep reviewing! This is my most reviewed story on my account and its because of your amazingness I keep going. :)**

* * *

_Deep in the still of the hot and steamy jungle, humans waited for their Savior to return to them. However, she never did. They looked up to the sky, like thirsty plants, awaiting rain. _

_ She still never came._

_ They began to lose hope and as her children were born, each human realized that something had gone terribly wrong. A sudden hush descended over every heart and the people trapped in a nightmarish Hell lowered their eyes and began to realize that she was never coming back. _

_However, in some places, not only was life ending. It was beginning too. A child's cry was heard in the silence of the jungle and somewhere, a mother was crying, knowing it would only be a shot time until her child was taken away from her either by death or by starvation which took almost as many as the Predators did. _

_ She lay back in her hammock and cried softly after so many hours of birth. It was a little boy with darker skin than his mother and she named him Alexander after her own grandfather. His father had been killed brutally a mere six months ago trying to defend her from a Super Predator. She missed him dearly but that didn't change the fact that he was gone. _

_For the first time in a long time, she looked up to the heavens and a flicker of a smile danced across her face. She was alone, yes, she was indeed quite frightened, and although she knew that they would not kill her child, at least not yet, she knew that he only had a little bit of time to become the warrior she knew he would become. _

_ She looked down, once more, on her child's sleeping face and she felt, for the first time in a long time, a flicker of hope within this dozing infant._

_He would become their savior. _

* * *

_Nine years since the beginning of our story. Nine long years have come and gone for our heroine and her mate. Children have come into the picture, two hybrids that were not so widely accepted on Nukj'ri's home planet. However, each had their strengths and flaws but each complimented the other perfectly. _

_ Irene has begun to hunt again. But, this time, she is hunting no Yaut'ja unless they are a Super Predator. She hunts her own kind, decorating her own walls with the skulls of her enemies, or those who have tried to trifle with her. A war hardened veteran of the Game Planet, she lost herself long ago to the bloodlust that had claimed the minds of most of the Yaut'ja. _

_Our story begins on one of these hunts and what happened afterwards._

* * *

**_Part II_**_**  
"The Hunter"  
Written by Bittersweet Applesauce  
All characters belong to their respectful owners**  
_

The creature that now stalked Private Alexis Marquee was one that she had never seen. She had seen the creature…the WOMAN only twice and each time she shot, she was afraid that she hadn't hit anything because she didn't hear anything. The female had been chasing her from the trees and Alexis was afraid that if she didn't keep moving she would fall prey to this Yaut'jan that, from her physique, probably wasn't even Yaut'jan which made it all the more embarrassing.

"Lady! Look, we're all humans here! I don't care where you're from but here, we're all trying to get along and survive!"

Suddenly, something dropped to the ground right in front of her and she whipped her pistol up to where she thought the woman might be. She heard something shifting through the underbrush and she almost pulled the trigger when she heard a voice.

Something flickered to her left and her head whipped towards it to see a hauntingly fierce looking woman with many scars on her face and around her wrist was a bracelet with some strange writing on it. She took a step closer to Alexis and chuckled, obviously bemused.

"You may think I look like an ooman," She had a very thick tongue, as if she hadn't spoken English in a long time; "You may even think I am one. But let me tell you that I am, unfortunately, the end of you. Dreadfully sorry."

She turned back on her cloaking device and Alexis began to fire wildly into the bushes. She no longer could hear the rusting of branches or anything that might have given this hunter away and she knew that was exactly what the female had planned. Her gun stopped firing and Alexis knew that the end of her life was in full view.

She was rather right because not ten seconds after her gun had stopped firing, the breath left her lungs and she willed her head to look down at the spear that was protruding violently from her chest. It pulled back with amazing force and she fell to her knees, unable to take in another breath. Her crimson life force gushed from the wound and her killer became visible again and she hated to see the glint of a smirk in the female's cold green eyes.

And then, without another thought, the killer flashed a knife from the belt at her waist and Alexis' vision went forever dark.

* * *

Irene wiped the blood off of her knife and then turned to stretch her back. She wasn't as young as used to be, but she was still in her prime. She was twenty six years old but time had been good to her and her diet kept her slim and her children kept her busy. Her son now towered over her at the tender young age of nine but her daughter was still small, keeping her mother's demeanor but her father's eyes and prominent forehead.

Speaking of which, he stepped up behind her and wrapped his big, bulky arm around her waist and tangled his mandibles in her short, deep copper colored hair. She made a face and turned to face all seven, almost eight feet of her mate. Nukj'ri splayed his mandibles happily and made a clicking noise which Irene tried to repeat with unsatisfactory results. He chuckled and then leaned down, allowing her to kiss him and then to whap his playfully between his eyes. He let out a teasing growl and allowed his mandibles to caress her throat.

"Before we get into that," She said suddenly, stepping away from him and switching back into the tongue spoken by the Yaut'ja "We need to get her body to the ship. Would you…"

His mandibles graced her scarred cheek and she could sense his smile, "It would be my pleasure. Where are you going?"

She looked up at him and blinked, "I thought I saw some oomans' camping about a mile away from here. Don't worry; I'll contact you if I need help." Although she rarely did, it felt good to know that her Hero, her nickname for her mate all these years, was only a button away, comforting her and reassuring her until he got to where she would be.

She activated her camouflage and began running through the brambles. Even though she was a hunter, she preferred to travel with her cloaking device on. She was smaller and more vulnerable than other Predators just because she was an ooman masquerading as a Yaut'ja. Since her encounter 9 years ago with Bait, she hadn't brought down another Super Predator but she was always on the lookout because they could see each other with their heat sensors built into their helmets.

The run took longer than it should have because of an unwanted complication with her loincloth getting snagged on a bramble and it took her six minutes to get it untangled. But, she was on the trail again before too long and in the ooman's hideout before anyone knew she was there. She slipped in between crevices, checking for any ooman life but found, to her disappointment, none.

Then she felt the mood of the atmosphere change into the aura of a trap that she knew better than most Predators because she didn't have that sixth sense like they did. She had been on Centanu's doorstep more than once because of this but to her, it only added to the thrill of the hunt. She had been caught more than once but that didn't stop her from hunting her own kind. Actually, she thrived on it, just like her fellow hunters did.

But, this wasn't an ooman trap. In her carelessness, she hadn't stopped to think about why there weren't any other hunters in this area and why there were no oomans. Something struck her across the head and she whipped around, waiting for the worst of the attack. It came at her with more force than she was ready for.

There, standing in front of her, was a force that she never expected to see ever again in front of her. She took a step back and her breath failed to fill her lungs.

"You…" She breathed, "You're supposed to be dead. I killed you nine years ago…"

Bait chuckled deep in his throat and extended his deadly wrist blades, "You might have thought you killed me, little ooman, but you forgot to check. My brothers came back and saved me from the brink of death. I have kept spies watching your every move. How you became the mate of a young Jungle Hunter who became smitten with the Angel of Death, a disciple of Centanu and how he fought tooth and nail to allow you to love him back." He took a step forward and suddenly, Irene felt like she was seventeen again, still tied to that stupid tree that was her prison for the first six months of her life on the Game Planet. She fell back to the baby Phoenix that hadn't grown its feathers and withered away to rise again from the ashes, "And as I heard of these tales, I grew ever more obsessed with you, plotting your slow, agonizing death, and then, wanting you to myself, to torture you until you scream my name."

She took a step back on shaking legs and noisily swallowed, bile slowly rising in her throat, "I killed you once, I can do it again. I'm a warrior now, and I'm not afraid of you."

He threw his helmeted head back and let out a loud laugh, "Then you have not only become more arrogant but far more foolish! I should kill you now, Daughter of Death!" He stopped suddenly and looked at her, "But I won't. I want to allow you to scream my name."

"We'll see about that!" Irene chided and then allowed her spear to extend to its full length. They watched each other for a few moments before Irene dropped to one knee, rolled towards him and tried to jab her spear into his thigh, which he promptly blocked. He then tried to slice her with his wrist blades but Irene parried with her own wrist blades that had been made especially for her. The problem was he was far bigger than her, pushing at least ten feet, probably more and was far stronger. He quickly made short work out of her wrist blades, yanking them completely off her wrists. She gasped as she heard a snap and her right wrist broke. She thanked Paya that she was left handed but the searing pain was too much for a fight.

Irene gritted her teeth and then picked up her spear, whipping it around just in time to catch his own wrist blades. He flicked the spear easily away and then popped Irene in the face, breaking her nose. She could taste her blood and saw the bright lights dance in front of her face. The pain hit a few seconds later and she tried to concentrate, but he was right. He had the upper hand. She had had Hero with her the last time they had fought and now…she felt so small and so useless but it was all she could do not to fall to the ground on shaking knees and give it all up. But…she had learned better than that and through the pain she glared back up at her oppressor and snarled.

"Let the flames begin."

His oil black dreads flicked back and forth as he watched her and her vain attempts to stay on her feet. Her knees were shaking and finally, with her final burst of energy, she made one last desperate attempt and jabbed her knife towards the bastard.

He laughed evilly and batted the knife away, watching the ooman, his ooman now, fall to the ground in a puddle of her own blood. She truly had become far more foolish. Living with the Jungle Hunters had lured her into a false sense of security and he scrutinized his prize carefully.

She was still as tall and had gained some extra curves from her children, but her hair had been cropped in a look that didn't suit her very well. However, her hair still glinted with the same luster he had come to love and had focused on while he was recovering. He imagined her eyes were still as green and full of hatred for him.

When he was finally sure she was done with all her tricks, he scooped her up in his arms, marveling on how small and fragile she was. Indeed, she had been lured into that sense of protection that he could imagine she had gathered while living with her mate.

He then turned on his cloaking device, activating Irene's as well to keep her concealed from any oomans. He wanted her in pristine condition for what he was going to do to her and he didn't want any oomans shooting at him or his prize. He wanted none of them; anyway, all he wanted was the Daughter of Death, the female in his arms.

* * *

Several hours passed before Nukj'ri realized something was wrong. He thought at the beginning that she was just having some problems with the oomans but as time passed, he began to worry more and more. So, with the idea of saving his mate in mind, he followed her exact footsteps until he reached the hideout that was void of any oomans. That was his first clue that something had gone terribly wrong. The second was the spear that lay on the dirt floor of the hideout. When he saw it, his heart almost stopped and he bent down to pick it up with shaking hands.

The blade was covered in dried ooman blood and he could confirm without a doubt that this was his wife's blood and what he smelled was not ooman but Super Predator. He feared the worst and he combed the area for any other sign of her. However, he found none. He then thought if they wanted a trophy, they would have also taken her spear, which gave Nukj'ri the sense of hope that his wife still may be alive. He picked up the spear and held it in his hands before letting out a deafening roar that would have awoken the dead.

They had stolen his Cheveyo and he was determined to get her back.

* * *

Yes? No? Maybe so? Anyways, So no more Mr. Monkey but hey, its gonna be okay, I promise. More exciting shizz in the next few chapters. :)**_  
PLAYLIST  
"Something in Your Mouth"-_Nickelback (Mating song)  
_"Look After You"_-The Fray (Mother/Children song)  
"_Chasing Cars"-_Snow Patrol (Couple song)  
_"Kamikaze"-_Owl City (Irene's Theme Song)  
_"Make Me Wanna Die"-_The Pretty Reckless (Bait and Irene's song)  
_"Let the Flames Begin"-_Paramore (Irene's Fight Song)  
_"Your Love is a Song"-_Switchfoot (Couple song IrenexHero)  
SONGS ARE STILL OPEN! :D  
**


	18. Broken Hands, Broken Spirits

**Ugh! SUCH a filler chapter! Don't worry, the ball will be back and rolling in the near future! I've taken a bit of time out to write some of my other neglected stories. **  
**I want to thank each and every person who has reviewed and continues to review my story. You guys are the reason I keep going and I love you all in my special virtual way. Now, to all those who were wondering why a teenage girl ended up on the Game Planet, all will be revealed in this chapter! (Woo-hoo! :D) **  
**Anywhoo, no interaction between Irene and her mate in this chappy (sad day, I know) BUT...A very large action scene in the next chapter that might actually go into two if my butt can take sitting down for another three hours. XD **  
**Enjoy this filler and remember that I LOOOOVE you guys! **

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!**

**P.S. I TOTALLY lied about the rape scene in the last part. And even though their is some hinted on sexual encounters in this chapter, there is nothing to graphic. No warning here, folks.  
**

* * *

_She'd tell him about her dreams...he'd just shoot 'em down._  
_Lord, he loved to make her cry. "You're crazy for believin' you'll ever leave the ground."_  
_He said "Only angels know how to fly."_  
_ And with a broken wing, she still sings. She keeps an eye on the sky._  
_ With a broken wing, she carries her dreams. _  
_Man, you ought to see her fly.  
_

* * *

Irene opened one blackened eye and groaned loudly. She felt as if her head had been rolled over by a steam train and her ribs didn't feel any better. She hurt so badly but she noticed that someone, or something, had patched up the worst of her injuries. Her nose was feeling better and her wrist felt far better. Then everything came back to her in a shock that almost knocked her out again. She had been captured by the creature she thought was dead.

Her body screamed in protest as she tried to sit up and finally, with a grunt, she fell back down and sucked in a painful breath between her teeth. She wondered if Nukj'ri had found out that she had been taken and she hoped that he would find her soon.

Her eyes flicked to her surroundings and saw she was in a hut with a high ceiling with very minimum lighting. Her pupils dilated and that allowed her to look around the dark room. There was a bed that was far too big for even a Jungle Hunter and a fire in the middle and skulls decorated each little crevice. She shivered and turned back to the door where she could see it was nighttime. She tried to move but then realized that she was shackled to a metal post in the middle of the room. She swore under her breath and then began to think about how to get out of this rather unfortunate incident. Getting caught once by Bait was understandable, she was getting raped, but now, she had no idea what he was going to do to her or if he would finally take his revenge on her.

Her answers were put to rest when a giant figure loomed at the door, his mandibles in a sneer. He made a clicking noise that Irene was never able to imitate and paced around her. She could see he was still as evil as she remembered and now, he had a rather nasty gash in his chest, a reminder that he shouldn't mess with the dynamic that was Irene and Hero.

"Do you understand the language of your mate's home world?" He asked bitterly and Irene scoffed.

"I wouldn't be talking to you if I didn't," She snapped sarcastically and his growled in warning.

"Do you know why you landed on this planet?" He asked suddenly and Irene arched an eyebrow. She had always been curious why she had only seen people from the military or people who actually knew how to use a gun instead of those like her who had to learn. She HAD been in karate when she had lived on Earth but that was such a far cry. However, she had INDEED given the Predators a run for their money.

He continued without her responding. "Your coming to this planet was completely a mistake. It was only by a fluke you were brought here."

Suddenly, Irene's skin went cold and her eyes went wide. "Y-You're lying!" She spat but she could tell that he wasn't. She remembered when she was a little girl; they bought the house from a man who had just finished his tour in the Navy. He had been a giant of a man who found the house too big for him after his wife and he got a divorce. Could this be the man they had wanted all along? She felt her swollen eyes prickle with tears and she shook her head, trying to deny the fact that it had all been a mistake. Nine years…Nine years and it all boiled down the fact that the man they wanted wasn't in that house anymore! She wanted to scream. She wanted to cry but now she was just too shocked. She heard Bait's chuckle and she whipped her head back to him. Suddenly, she was the little 18 year old girl who had just crash landed and now was trying to stay alive instead of thriving. Her body slumped to the floor, and finally, she knew that her will was gone. She WAS a silly little girl who believed she could fill in the shoes of the Elite Hunters.

"What's the matter little warrior?" Bait mocked her, "Did you lose your fight?"

Her body convulsed as a sob wracked her body and she looked up at Bait, tears now streaming down her bloody, raw cheeks in anger and realization.

"What do you plan to do with me?" She asked between gritted teeth and he glared down at her, and she could tell that in his horrible mind, he had the worst form of torture in mind for her. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, ready for whatever he had in store for her.

She felt something cold press against her forehead and again, her whole world went fuzzy and Bait's words became garbled and suddenly, there was a sharp pain at her chest and she had no idea how long this went on but time had no meaning in this haze that she couldn't escape. There was more pain, between her legs this time and now, it had grown so intense, even through the haze she felt her body shattering, trying to expel this unwanted intruder. The pain too intense even through the mist, she felt her world, once again, tumble into darkness.

When she opened her eyes once again she noticed pink tinged sunlight filtering into the hut. Bait wasn't there anymore but…Oh Paya, her body hurt! Her breasts felt as if they had been kneaded more than most bakers' dough and between her legs…

Her blood turned to ice as she realized what had happened. The bloody bastard had done the unthinkable and had…Paya no! No, no, no! He couldn't have done THAT! He hated her! And he promised he was going to make her scream! Had she screamed? Had she called out the name of her true love or had she just lain there like a ragdoll and taken it. She couldn't move and she could tell that her pelvis had cracked from the largeness of his member. She moaned and looked down at her body. She was black and blue in places that she never expected to get bruised in.

Maybe he didn't hate her as much as she thought he might have. Tears of anguish and defeat made dark speckles in the dust as she began to cry harder than she had in her entire life.

When the pink light had faded into dusk, Bait finally came back into his hut and clicked his mandibles in a mocking salute to the fallen woman.

"You do not make a very good bed partner," He mocked and then kicked her, waking her up rather rudely. She opened one eye and groaned loudly.

"Sod off you giant asshole," She mumbled in English and curled back into a ball.

"You should be honored," He continued, "It is extremely scandalous to bed one of your kind, even if you are a Daughter of Death. Most of the time that would mean death for both of us but…I thought it would be best if you had a draught of darkness. It kept you quiet for the most part and even if you were screaming...Death would have been worth it."

Irene was completely speechless. He HAD raped her! The dirty cock sucking bastard...She didn't know what would come from this whether that meant death or…God forbid…His child in her womb. She knew she could have Hero's children but was Bait too big? He had almost ripped her apart the first time and now…she wondered if she could ever have children again.

"The others in your clan," She asked in a hushed voice, "Do they know I'm here?"

Bait put the corpse of an ooman onto the floor of the hut and laughed at her. "Of course they know you're here. I told them that I would kill you…eventually. You even have a special place on my wall for your skull."

She felt like vomiting up the nothingness in her belly. She wanted to run far, far away from here, back into the arms of her beloved, but she realized that there was very little chance of that ever happening. She hoped he kill her quickly so she wouldn't have to spend any more time in his presence. Irene also knew she had little chance of finding something else to destroy her bonds, these ones being iron chains. She wished she could see her children but hoped they would never see her like this. Bruised, alone, and crushed, she was ready for death to finally open up his loving arms and take her home to be with her grandma and uncle. She wanted to be home again. Not on Hero's home world but with her real family. The dull ache that had settled in her heart so long ago, escaladed to a sharp pain and she curled up on the floor once again and tried to ignore the sound of flesh leaving bone and the copper scent of blood.

* * *

Hours turned to days and days turned to months. Irene hated herself for being so weak and each day, she found a new way to entertain herself and knew if she didn't get some real entertainment in the near future, she would go mad. Each day, Bait took her off her chain and allowed her to go to a hut to use the facilities then to the river to drink. She was allowed food once every two days and she dropped weight quickly. Her body couldn't repair itself and she felt herself losing the battle to stay alive. Her guilt ate her from the inside out and finally, altogether, she became a walking corpse. All the fight was gone out of her and she looked forward to the day she would die.

One morning she woke up and found a pile of food by her spot in the corner bigger than normal. She tried to eat it all, but realized she could only eat about twelve berries and a strip of meat. The rest would have to go into a large leaf she found that had blown into the hut one stormy morning. She leaned back against the hut, chewing on a hunk of meat as she thought about her current circumstances. She was being held as a captive, a spoil of a war that she had started and a war she was now feeling the consequences for. She was slowly being stripped of everything that was Irene…Howard.

The last name gave her a sense of power. She hadn't thought about it for a long while but now, she felt a little spark in the darkness that was her existence, like someone striking two flint rocks together. She sat up and winced as her still sore body rebelled against her. The shackle around her wrists had migrated to her ankle as her spirit shattered like a mirror. She glanced up at the pink sky and closed her eyes, relishing the breeze that brought the smells and sounds of a world that was so…alive but yet so dead.

Irene Howard opened her eyes and for the first time in a long time, smiled softly to herself. She would be alright and she could feel the wind of change in her battered wings once again.

Bait noticed the change right away and began to watch her more closely. How she hummed softly to herself while she rinsed her mouth out with the water from the river and how she actually smiled when she saw something small but wonderful whether that be a tree or a ctreuka clinging to the branches of a wispy sapling. He knew that her spirit was returning step by step and yet, she wasn't the same fiery spirit he had once known but a softer being. Unlike the roaring fire she had once been, she was now the flicker of a candle in the darkness of her own soul. When he finally figured out what it was, he made a vow right there and then, he would crush every trace of light out of the girl who had brought him nights of nightmares and dreams of her face.

She was his obsession and he would live to see her crushed.

* * *

**Song used: With A Broken Wing-Martina McBride**

**_"Something in Your Mouth"-_Nickelback (Mating song)  
_"Look After You"_-The Fray (Mother/Children song)  
"_Chasing Cars"-_Snow Patrol (Couple song)  
_"Kamikaze"-_Owl City (Irene's Theme Song)  
_"Make Me Wanna Die"-_The Pretty Reckless (Bait and Irene's song)  
_"Let the Flames Begin"-_Paramore (Irene's Fight Song)  
_"Your Love is a Song"-_Switchfoot (Couple song IrenexHero)  
_"With a Broken Wing"_-Martina McBride (Irene's Song-Chapter 18)  
**


	19. The Rescue of a Broken Songbird

**Can I be blunt with you guys? I'm not feeling this story anymore. This is just like...filler now. I. NEED. HELP. I don't know where to go after this chapter and I'm sort of in a rut. I really want to continue this but I don't know where to go. If you have any ideas or even want to become my cowriter, please PM me or leave me a review. **

**Thanks to everyone who has been reading and reviewing since the beginning! I love you all, you guys have a super special place in my heart and if I could hug you all, I would.**  
**LET'S GET TO THE MEAT N' POTATOES OF DIS, SHALL WE?**

**1.) I do not own Alien vs. Predators. Not sure who does, but it sure ain't me.**

**2.) I do own my OC, Irene Howard and Hero and Bait sort of fall in somewhere in that category of what I've made up and what other people have developed. **

**4.) This story is rated M for a reason. There will be several lemons and NO limes. (So against writing those!) There will be warnings on chapters that have lemons in them so our more sensitive readers can skip a chapter!**

**(Will someone please punch me in the uterus? I sound sooooo lame right now!)  
**

* * *

And here she was, once again dancing as if her life depended on it.

This time however, it really did. She danced in the light of the flickering fire, doing the steps she had solemnly learned so long ago. A year had passed for the woman and now, she wore the lines of a hard year on her face. She longed to return to her children and wondered if they had dismissed her as dead or were trying to find her. Although she knew Hero would never give up looking for her.

She dipped once again, her flexible backbone bending like reeds in the wind and the Super Predator watched her as she turned again on her heel to a non-existent noise.

Bait said something she didn't understand-There were still differences in between the language of the Jungle Hunters and Super Predators and she stopped dancing, allowing her body to catch up with her movements. She was sore and tired of dancing and wanted to sleep. Fortunately, she had gathered enough materials to make herself a little nest.

She sighed and ran a hand through her greasy hair, ignoring the glares that Bait sent her. She opened one eye and glared right back. She was sick and tired of being the pet of something that she had been considered the equal to not long ago and she wanted something to eat besides dead animals.

"Get," He snapped and Irene, who hated being treated like a pet but was exhausted, didn't argue and so she staggered over to where her nest was and flopped down on it. She bit her tongue and uttered a swear word under her breath but was surprised to feel Bait's fumbling hands tying the restraint around her ankle. She was surprised. Usually he had a very clean, quick knot but then she realized that he had been drinking. Irene could smell the drink on his breath from her head down in the leaves and other bits of this and that.

Slowly, he stood back up and stumbled over to the tent door which he closed after a few moments of angry clicking noises and such. Then he swayed over to his animal pelts and crashed and burned. Irene waited to see if he was going to snore and…yes! He was out like a light!

Many months earlier, she had tried in vain to remove her restraints with no avail but now, she picked at the knot with renewed urgency until finally…No…it was impossible…YES! The knot had given and her foot was free! She tried not to scream in joy but heard a little cry come from her lips. She clapped her hand over her mouth and her eyes flicked to the sleeping form of her captor. He snorted and rolled over in his sleep, exposing his vulnerable front side and Irene's eyes then fell on the weapons he had on his walls as if she was deciding what method to carve the turkey in. Finally, her eyes landed on a pair of wicked hunting knives that some members of the Jungle Hunters carried for an extra bit of sport. Slowly, on shaking legs, she stood up and walked over to where they were mounted. They were too far up for her to get but she could see where she could climb up and get them. Other weapons and helmets mounted on the wall gave her a step ladder and slowly and silently, she made her way towards the knives. They were a little big for her, almost sword length, but their edges would still do her a world of good. She unstuck them and almost falling back onto the floor, she grabbed another helmet from the walls to regain balance, heart hammering.

Unfortunately, the noise she had made was enough to catch the attention of a few Yaut'ja walking outside of the tent. Irene had just dove deeper into the shadows when the tent flap was thrown aside and two males walked into the hut.

"That fool, he's gotten drunk again."

"It's best not to wake him. You know what he's like when he's awake and had too much."

"I wonder how he was making so much noise…He seems to be dead asleep and the noise I heard sounded like trophies or weapons falling to the floor."

Irene's hands tightened around the handles of her weapons. She didn't want to kill these Predators but if they jeopardized her freedom, she wouldn't hesitate.

Suddenly, a scream from somewhere else in the village got the Predator's attention before wrist blades had taken off one's head and had gotten one in the stomach. He doubled over and the wrist blades cut upwards, ending his knife. Irene could hear the other sounds of carnage in the village and heart began to work double time. It was another clan of hunters and when they found her, they would kill her in a heartbeat. She slammed up against the wall as the Predator took one look at Bait's unconscious form, took a step back as if he didn't believe it, and unsheathed his spear. Then she recognized the markings on his helmet and his color, distorted by the flames that danced on the hut's walls.

"HERO!" She screamed and the Predator turned to see me but not before a large knife went through his right side and he fell to the ground, roaring in pain. Bait had gotten up and was waving the knife around, trying to kill her. Irene's heart had been ripped out of her chest and as she slowly got up, she finally knew that this was our final battle. One of us WAS going to die and she knew it wasn't going to her.

"BAIT," She said in a loud voice and the he whipped his dreads around to see her standing with the twin blades and the fire of an unbridled beast in her eyes, "It ends here, you bastard."

They stepped around each other for a few moments and Bait, still intoxicated, stood to kill her but Irene knew, after a year of watching him train, where to strike and so, with a flip of the blade, she swung it around and buried it deep into Bait's left kidney. He roared in anguish but Irene didn't finish there, oh no. She then took the blade, pulled it down so Bait was at her eye level and he could see the eyes of a madwoman, a woman who had been held hostage for too long.

"This is for everything, you ugly mother fucker!" She then took the other blade and shoved it straight in between his eyes, piercing his brain and causing him to lurch forward and fall like a tree. Irene took the blade from Bait's kidney and sliced off his head, taking it and holding it up. The nightmare was over and she was free.

Then she remembered Hero.

She ran forward and not caring if she skinned her knees on the ground or not, fell down beside him and took his head in her lap. He was alive but his breathing was labored.

"You really are what they said you were," Hero mumbled with a little click. Irene wiped tears that were threatening to spill out of her eyes and sniffed. Her beloved was dying and all she could do was sit there and make sure his last moments were as comfortable as possible, "You really are an angel of death, taking me to become a warrior in the next life. Promise you will stay with me forever, angel."

She kissed his hand and then began to cry, holding his hand to her forehead. "Don't die, Hero…Please don't leave me here alone…I can't do this…" She tried to say more but the tears silenced her words. His hands cupped her face and wiped away the tears. His mandibles splayed into a sad smile and she gulped back her tears.

"Oomans," He murmured, "You are so very strange."

"I…love you, Nukj'ri," She sobbed and wished more than anything she could help him.

"And I love you, my Cheveyo. From the moment I saw you, I knew I loved you."

Irene's tear streaked face looked up as several Predators came into the room including Ple'oni with her own mate. When she saw Irene, she nodded to her and motioned for a med kit to be used on Hero. Several Predators kneeled in the dirt and began to patch up the wound.

"It's too deep, my queen," One of them said softly, "If we can't get him back…"

"Take him then," Ple'oni motioned for them to take Nukj'ri and Irene reluctantly let them take him. She then stood and walked over to Ple'oni. The female glanced at Irene and made a pleasant clicking noise, "Were you losing hope?"

"Only once," Irene wiped away her tears and watched as the onslaught continued, "How did you find me?"

"It was hard but once Nukj'ri caught wind that there was a Predator who lingered on the Game Planet who had an unnatural obsession with an ooman, he knew where to look." Ple'oni looked down at Irene, "Your mate never gave up hope, never once."

"I know he wouldn't," She murmured and then felt guilt wash over her, "He's been almost killed twice for me. Will I never stop owing him?"

"I don't think he minds," Ple'oni murmured, "Well of course he minds, but I have never seen a male so connected to his mate. You are a strange, wonderful match and I know that he loves protecting you. Usually it's the other way around but…" Ple'oni trilled slightly and Irene looked up at her, but their eyes did not meet. "He is a strange one indeed."

Irene nodded and then felt all her strength leave her, all the adrenaline that coursed through her bloodstream slowly evaporate as she came to terms with her predicament. She had only seen her Hero for a few seconds and even then they only spent a few precious seconds together. She slowly slumped to the ground and let the tears that had collected over the past year fall onto the dusty ground and slowly, those tears turned into spasming sobs as she thought of all that had happened to her over the course of the past year. Ple'oni just stood there and watched as her Hunters tore through the unsuspecting huts of the Super Predators, the blood of the innocent and condemned gathering at her feet.

* * *

Irene woke up in the medical room surrounded by two familiar faces. One was a girl who appeared to be more Yaut'jan than human but still held some of her mother's more favorable traits and a younger boy who, even with his prominent forehead and small mandibles, retained more human than his sister. Both had dark red hair and golden eyes.

"Cheveyo?" The girl spoke and her voice was filled with sadness and happiness all at the same time, "Are you…"

The boy just reached over and touched his mother's cheek, "I see you." He said softly and Irene reached over with a slightly bandaged hand and touched his cheek, a gesture of familiarity between mothers and their kits here.

"I see you," She whispered and then did the same thing to her daughter who was much more cautious around Irene than her son. Akecheta and Lai'sha happened to be twins but they were extremely different. Akechta was softer and held more emotion than his elder sister, but his sister was a greater warrior, a girl who hoped to take her mother's place as a female hunter.

"We missed you," Lai'sha said as the twins sat on her cot, "There were times when Nukj'ri…He never gave up looking for you."

"Never," Her brother echoed and Irene looked at her children. They were so different than when she had left them. They had never called her mom or even mother, but like all pups, they called her by her first name and now…they even seemed more distance.

Suddenly, Irene sat up and winced. Her side was screaming in agony and Lai'sha's eyes flicked down to her mother's side.

"Don't get up. You had to get several ribs put back together and…" Lai'sha bit her lower lip, "The healers say that you can…never have children again…"

Irene landed back on the pillows with a FWUMP and thought about what her daughter had said, trying not to cry. "What about your father? What about Nukj'ri?"

Akechta glanced at his sister and even though they were both ten years old, they held more maturity than creatures twice their age.

"He's…recovering…" Lai'sha chose her words carefully, "He wants to see you as soon as you're up to it but…" Here she looked back at her brother and a flicker of a grin crossed her face and a tinge of pink came across her gold and black dotted skin, "He wants to see you alone."

Several days passed of medical care and finally, Irene was able to get out of bed to see her Hero and as she padded down the hall, she had a major feeling of déjà vu she had gotten when Hero had fought for her in the Arena. She had a feeling that this story also might have a familiar ending.

* * *

So...there you have it. I'm stuck. Please, OH PLEASE give me somewhere to go from here!  
*Waves* Thanks for reading! If you like what you're reading, leave me a question, comment, concern, etc. :3

**_"Something in Your Mouth"-_Nickelback (Mating song)  
_"Look After You"_-The Fray (Mother/Children song)  
"_Chasing Cars"-_Snow Patrol (Couple song)  
_"Kamikaze"-_Owl City (Irene's Theme Song)  
_"Make Me Wanna Die"-_The Pretty Reckless (Bait and Irene's song)  
_"Let the Flames Begin"-_Paramore (Irene's Fight Song)  
_"Your Love is a Song"-_Switchfoot (Couple song IrenexHero)  
_"With a Broken Wing"_-Martina McBride (Irene's Song-Chapter 18)  
_"Howl"_-Florence + The Machine (Irene's song again)  
**


	20. Revenge is Best Served

**I FINALLY have gotten over my MAJOR writer's block and have decided to mesh my two Predator stories together. This one is separate from "The Strongest of All" which is an Aliens vs. Predators story but they collide at one point...(I will finish this first and then I'll continue on with "The Strongest of All" so stayed tuned for that because this story will be wrapping up quickly, unfortunately. :()**  
**Anyway, I just wanna say thanks to everyone who's reviewed, is going to review and who's put this story on their favorites and added me as a favorite author! You guys flatter me beyond recognition! Stay tuned for far more frequent updates and sorry this one is so short. Still trying to get it up and running once again!**  
**Predators (c) NOT ME! But...somebody...**  
**Irene/All humans in this story (c) ME! :D**

* * *

_Never let me go, never let me go._  
_ Never let me go, never let me go._

_ And the arms of the ocean are carrying me, _  
_ And all this devotion was rushing out of me, _  
_ And the crashes are heaven, for a sinner like me, _  
_ The arms of the ocean deliver me._

* * *

Several days passed of medical care and finally, Irene was able to get out of bed to see her Hero and as she padded down the hall, she had a major feeling of déjà vu she had gotten when Hero had fought for her in the Arena. She had a feeling that this story also might have a familiar ending. She stepped into the cool room where her mate was sleeping soundly. She cocked her head slightly and took a step closer, nervous to touch him. He hadn't changed at all but she knew she had. She was older, maybe in her late twenties or early thirties and began to show signs of age. The methane rich planet helped her to retain a little of her skin's dignity but not all of it.

She traced her fingers over his skin, savoring the ridges on his forehead, touching the ends of his mandibles, pressing softly into the sharp point.

"My mate…" She murmured and blushed as his eyes fluttered open and caught sight of her. A silence passed between them that could only be explained by one thing…Their absence from the other. Suddenly, his mandibles flared slightly and his eyes turned warm, like he remembered…everything.

"My Cheveyo…" He purred and cradled her cheek with the palm of his hand. Suddenly, tears sprung to her eyes and she pressed into his hand.

"I missed you so much," Her voice cracked with raw emotion as he leaned down to capture her lips with his mandibles before she could say anything else. The kiss poured life back into Irene's broken body and she began to kiss him back, her tears mingling with the heat of the moment. She knew where this would end up and she also knew that if she didn't stop it they would end up hurting the other more than they were already hurting.

Irene broke the kiss and smiled softly at her mate, "Later, my love. You are still recovering slowly and soon, you will be well again."

She stood up but he pulled her back down next to him, tangling his mandibles in her dreads. "Stay with me. You keep the nightmares away." He murmured as he tightened his grip around her waist. She placed her own arm around his and closed her eyes. "I never lost hope for a moment."

"I know," She whispered, feeling a tear trickle down her cheek. "You are my Hero and always will be."

"And you are my angel, forever my sweet angel. Never leave me again."

She smiled, finally feeling one with her mate, finally after so long. "I never will again."

* * *

Stars in the heavens sparkled as two young people, a man and a woman dashed through the thick woods of the Game Planet. The man's name was Victor and the woman's was Lily and they were running to meet up with a rather large group of humans, bent on destroying on what the Yaut'ja called "The Warrior of Centanu," a human who had started off killing Predators but had turned her eyes on humans when she joined them as a hunter.

"She was here, I know she was," Lily swore under her breath as her partner, Victor, touched the footprints of a human female admits the larger prints of Yaut'ja in the destroyed camp of Jungle Hunters. He stood up and brushed the dirt off of his already filthy pants and swung the gun over to his other shoulder. "We'd be damned lucky if she ever came back this way again."

Lily narrowed her eyes and glanced at the prints in the light of the twin moons. "Come on, Jose and Thais will be waiting for us, we should hurry up or they'll move."

Victor nodded, his green eyes sparkling with the idea of revenge in the cold moonlight. Alexis was dead because of this woman and other humans in their party were dead because of her mate. They had seen them hunting together before or at least that's what Lily had said. She had almost been caught by the male Yaut'ja but escaped with her life.

He took one last look back at the clearing that was wrought with death and reeking bodies and hurried to catch his partner in crime.

It had been eleven years since the birth of Thais' baby boy, Alexander, and he was growing to become a great hunter, like his father. Trent had been killed, of course, defending Thais so long ago, but his memory still burned bright in the hearts of all the survivors. They had bonded together, finding tunnels built by others on the Game Planet before them as places to hide and they had made a rather complex underground community.

Slowly, they approached the entrance to one such community and glanced around to make sure that nobody was watching them as they shimmied down into a hole in the ground. They couldn't be sure that a Predator wasn't watching them but it was a chance they would have to take.

Dropping down onto trampled dirt, the tunnel opened up into a wide variety of activity. Men and women were getting ready to sleep and several children, a miracle to all that saw them, were already sleeping in coarse hammocks, something they had grown up with their entire lives.

Lily stowed her machete into the bag she always carried it in and watched as couples curled up into their own hammocks, some of them stopping to wave at Lily and Victor. People said they would be cute together but she had someone at home waiting for her when she got off the planet.

"Come on, we don't have much time to waste," She motioned Victor forward and they hurried down long corridors of packed dirt, illuminated every so often by a torch that made the place smoky until the recent discovery of a pitch that helped it burn with far more clarity.

Small rooms branched out the main corridor, holding families and supplies gathered to defend from the possible attacks of Predators. They hadn't been attacked yet but there was always that possibility.

The duo made their tracks through another more developed part of the caverns where an older woman, perhaps in her late twenties stood, her had on the shoulder of a young boy. The woman had had her son when she was barely fifteen, an accident on her part but she had been in love with the man. It was a mistake she was even on the plane at all.

"Lily, Victor," She said, nodding to the pair.

"Thais, it's good to see you again," Victor said in his deep baritone voice, "We found traces of the woman, the warrior."

"Good, good," Thais said, squeezing the shoulder of her son. "Do you have any idea when she would be coming back?"

"None at all Thais, but that will give us time to get her away from her mate, get her to trust us and then strike her where it hurts. Maybe…taking down her mate?"

"She would come at us with vengeance. I saw her, and it looks like she had kids. If she brings back more Hunters, we would all be killed and all we've worked for…all that Trent wanted…would go up in flames."

"We could just separate her mate and kill her, leaving her body where he would find with a warning. Tell him to tell his kind to stay the hell away from us or we will kill more. We're become a force to reckon with, Thais, and they know that."

"Do they?" They boy spoke in his sad, wispy voice and all eyes turned to him. He was small with sharp angular features, "We're only humans against an army of aliens."

Thais was quiet for a moment and then a small smile tugged on the corners of her lips. "However…if we turn the Warrior on her mate, we can fight fire with fire. They would never kill one of their own and she is probably looked upon as such…If she refuses, she will be killed and we will use the body as a warning…Either she will join us or die."

* * *

**Okay, sort of lame but it's going to be pretty darned awesome. :) Just trying to get back into the whole writing of this again...trying to go back and reread all of the story to see where I've gone. XD **

**Next up...Some super sexy lemonade...Combustible, of course. ;D **  
**Lyrics (c) Florence and the Machine**


End file.
